We Finally Got it All Right
by sel1006
Summary: Beca and Chloe take their young family to Hawaii for a Barden Bellas reunion. Will the stress that Beca's career is causing on their marriage cause the trip to be less than enjoyable? Or will love surprise the whole group? Established Bechloe, lots of fluff. Rated M for language mostly, and some sex in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

As the outro music faded, Beca slid off her headphones so they were around her neck. Rubbing her eyes, she looked at the artist in the booth and let out a sigh. Putting on a smile, she pressed the intercom into the vocal booth.

"That was great Taylor. I think the bridge is finally getting to where we want it. Take a few minutes and we'll go again."

Taylor Swift gave Beca a thumbs-up through the glass and stepped away from the microphone to grab a sip of water.

Beca's phone buzzed on the console, and she stretched her arms over her head, groaning lightly as she did so. They had been in the studio essentially three days straight trying to finish some demos for the label before a rapidly approaching deadline. Beca had been working on and off with Taylor Swift for a number of years after she toured with DJ Khaled. Taylor was just one artist in a long list of talented musicians that Beca had been fortunate enough to work with over the years, and Beca's years of hard work were paying off in that now she was one of the top American producers. The Beca Mitchell name was in high demand, and Beca's numerous hours in the recording studio were quickly accumulating. Beca was of course satisfied with how her career had flourished over the past few years, but the past six months had been a whirlwind, both personally and professionally. She was in a state of exhaustion that she had never even considered humanly possible.

Rubbing her eyes again, Beca flipped a few switches on the console in preparation for running back the new segment they had just recorded and picked up her phone to see who was texting her. Seeing three missed calls from "Home" Beca sighed and opened her texts to see a few unread messages. One of them was a picture of one of her favorite humans and Beca took a moment to study the picture, which was of a small boy wearing a blue graduation cap and gown with a big grin on his face.

 _Jack missed you at his preschool graduation -_ the caption read. _Hope you'll be home early enough to have some cake with us :)_

There was another text from the same number that followed the picture. _Also, don't forget that we need to leave at 9am tomorrow in order to make it on time for our flight!_

Beca groaned internally, realizing that it was going to be a late night in the studio and she hadn't even started to pack for the trip she was supposed to be taking in less than 24 hours. She scrolled back up to the picture of the young boy and grinned at it for a few moments before putting her phone back down beside her workstation. Leaning back in her chair, the diminutive brunette took a few deep breaths and glanced at the clock. 4:57pm. Shit. By her estimate, they still had several hours of work to get the demo to a place where Beca wanted it. She picked up her coffee which had been cold for a handful of hours at this point and took a large swig. Swallowing hastily, she pressed the intercom to the isolation booth and tried to sound upbeat.

"Okay Taylor, what do you say we try and run it again? Let's see if we can clean up the final chorus as well as the outro."

"Sure thing!" The blonde singer replied. "I have a few runs I think will work well for that section of the song."

"Awesome. Let's bang it out then." Beca settled into her chair and slipped the headphones back over her ears. Pressing a few buttons, the background track started playing throughout the studio and Beca closed her eyes and tried to focus on the music. The upbeat track seemed to steady her uneasiness and she relaxed and let the music wash over her. After a moment, someone tapped her on the shoulder and she swiveled her chair around to find her boss giving her a quick wave before setting down a fresh cup of coffee down on her workstation.

Beca pulled her headphones off and immediately grabbed the coffee.

"Dude, you don't know how much of a lifesaver this is right now." She took a long drink from the fresh cup of coffee. She screwed her eyes closed when the hot liquid almost burned her tongue. "Oh! Shit! That's hot! But also, so so good!" Beca took another sip of the coffee and turned back to the console to focus her efforts on Taylor who was still singing in the isolation booth.

"How's the track coming?" Charlie asked, sliding up the volume so that Taylor's vocals could be heard over the studio speakers. He bobbed his head to the beat as he moved to stand beside Beca. "You gonna be able to get this done before you have to fly tomorrow?"

"Well, that is the million-dollar question now, isn't it?" Beca replied, twisting her wedding band around her finger distractedly as she looked over at her boss. "I mean…I don't really have a choice. It's gotta be finished tonight because I'm gone for the next ten days." The music producer yawned and took another pull from her coffee cup. "A deadline is a deadline."

Charlie Paulsen had been working closely with Beca for the past year or so. Beca greatly respected the man, and they had a great working relationship which translated to several hit tracks over the past thirteen months. They made a great team, and Charlie was constantly pushing Beca to up her game to keep up with other competitive record labels. Although Beca was young in comparison to other successful producers, Charlie knew she was extremely talented, and basically gave her free reign creatively over the studio as well as the artists she worked with. With just a glance at the still-yawning woman, he could tell that she had been burning the midnight oil in order to meet this deadline. The label had been putting a lot of pressure on her with this particular set of demos, especially because Taylor Swift's last record was produced by Beca and had gone platinum in a record amount of time. Both Beca, and Charlie by extension, were feeling the pressure to produce more hit tracks and to repeat the previous achievements. Charlie listened to the track playing over the speakers for a few more seconds before turning down the volume.

"This is sounding good Mitchell. That hook is money."

Beca nodded and looked up at her boss. "Yeah, I mean I'm still not totally satisfied with the song as a whole, but I think we're on the right track."

Charlie nodded and studied the woman for a few seconds. She looked downright exhausted. "When was the last time you slept for more than a few hours Beca?"

Beca closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of nose as she searched her exhausted mind to find the answer to Charlie's question. "Uhhhh, I got a few hours last night…I think?"

Charlie rolled his eyes, knowing full well that Beca had spent the night on the studio couch. "I meant at home kid. You know…like in your own bed…with your family."

Beca let out a mirthless laugh and took another swig of her coffee. "Well today is what…Friday?" She glanced down at her watch to confirm. "So, I guess…. Tuesday? I mean I slept at home at least, but definitely not a full night. You know…kids and all. They're cute and everything, but they never sleep." She looked up at Charlie with a sheepish grin on her face. Her grin disappeared quickly and she rubbed a hand over her face. "I need to finish this and get home at a reasonable hour."

Charlie placed a hand on her shoulder and gave her a quick pat. "Yeah, I'll leave you to it." Straightening up, he turned to leave Beca to her work. "Let me know if you need another set of ears before you finish for the night, I'd be more than happy."

Beca was already back and focused on the console in front of her. She adjusted a few sliders and held her fist up toward her boss. "Thanks Charlie, I'll let you know. Otherwise, I'll leave the demos in your office on my way out."

Charlie extended his fist, meeting Beca's in a fist bump. "Yeah, sounds great." He started toward the door. "Have a good vacation." He called over his shoulder. "You definitely are long overdue for one Mitchell…try and relax, yeah?"

Beca choked mid-sip on her coffee, spluttering for a few seconds. A Bellas reunion was most certainly not going to be relaxing in the least and was most certainly not to be considered a vacation, even if it was in a tropical location. Knowing that Aubrey would likely have put together a jam-packed itinerary for the group of women, relaxation would be hard to come by. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she put her coffee back down. Chuckling to herself as her boss exited the studio, she slipped her headphones back on and focused at the task at hand. Although Beca would never admit it out loud, she was in fact looking forward to the trip. The Bellas had become her family over the years, and had led to her current career, a fact that Beca greatly appreciated. Beca grinned to herself, mentally anticipating whatever shenanigans would take place on the trip. The music faded once again, and Beca slipped back into reality looking up at the tall blonde singer on the other side of the glass.

"That was great Taylor! Take five and I'll run it back and we can go over some feedback."

Picking up her phone once again, Beca opened her texts to type out a response to her earlier messages.

 _Can't wait to come home and have cake with you guys. Hopefully not too late tonight! I'll see you when I get home._

As she hit "send" she hoped her message would prove to be true, and she would actually be home at a reasonable hour. However, based on the current state of affairs in the studio, Beca wasn't sure she would be able to keep her promise. This was becoming all too common these days.


	2. Chapter 2

The lights came on suddenly, awaking Beca with a jolt. Glancing around while simultaneously trying to clear the sleep from her eyes, Beca reached for her phone which had fallen to the ground.

12:23am.

"Goddammit!" Beca cursed and hopped off the couch, trying to gather her belongings as quickly as possible. She had apparently fallen asleep on the couch in the studio while putting the final touches on the demo tracks. Taylor had left the studio a few hours ago and Beca hadn't anticipated on being here quite this late.

"I'm sorry Beca, I didn't think you'd still be here this late." One of the normal custodians must have been the one to flip the lights on and awaken her.

Beca slammed her laptop closed and shoved it into her messenger bag. "It's fine Jerry. I didn't think I'd still be here this late either. I must have passed out for a bit." She finished cramming her personal items into her bag and moved to her console computer to burn the final mixes of the demos on to a CD for the record label staff. Jamming her finger down on the mouse button several times in rapid succession, she willed the computer to burn the CD more quickly. "Oh my god, could this go any slower?" Beca muttered under her breath.

After a few agonizingly slow minutes, the CD was finally complete and Beca grabbed it from the CD tray and placed it into a case. Beca pulled out a sharpie from her bag and scrawled some information on the case, then waved it in the air for a few seconds to make sure the ink had dried. She picked up her bag from the couch and gave the janitor a wave.

"Have a good weekend Jerry. Say hi to Diane for me."

The janitor gave her a friendly wave in return and Beca walked briskly down the hallway toward Charlie's office so she could drop off the CD. Finding his door unlocked, she pushed the door open and tossed the CD onto his desk and exited as quickly as she had entered. Adjusting the strap on her messenger bag further up her shoulder, she reached down into the canvas bag to find her car keys. Once she had located them she made her way out of the building and onto the street and into her Range Rover. As she pulled away from the curb, Beca secretly appreciated that it was so late, as there likely wouldn't be much traffic as she headed to her home on the outskirts of Los Angeles. LA traffic was notoriously awful, and Beca knew she was on thin ice as it was, given that she was headed home at such a late hour. Beca turned up the dial on the radio and tried not to think about the fact that she would be headed to the airport in less than nine hours and had yet to pack anything for the trip.

Thankfully the ride home took less than twenty minutes, and Beca was pulling into the driveway of a decent sized house before 1am. Shutting off the ignition, Beca slumped forward and rested her head against the steering wheel.

"She's gonna kill me." She whispered to herself. Beca slipped out of the Range Rover and headed towards the back door of the house. It looked as though all the lights were off in the house, meaning the rest of the occupants were likely fast asleep. Beca fumbled with her key in the lock while cursing under her breath, then finally opened the door to the dark house. Dropping her bag and her keys right inside the door, she bent to take off her designer sneakers and headed further into the house. Noticing one of the lights was still on in the kitchen, Beca headed in that direction. As she entered the large modern kitchen, Beca smiled at a piece of cake waiting for her on the large kitchen island. Grabbing a fork from one of the drawers, Beca sat down on one of the stools and pulled the plate towards her. Beca smiled once again as she pulled a note off the plate, where it had been resting next to the generous slice of cake. Her eyes scanned the handwritten note, and Beca smiled wistfully as she read the words in her wife's looping handwriting.

 _Becs- I was under specific instructions (from Jack obviously) to make sure you got a piece of cake. Your bag is packed and ready to go. Get some sleep XOXO_

Beca smiled despite her exhaustion and stuck her fork into the piece of cake, savoring the sweet dessert for a few minutes. Reading the note once more, Beca took one last bite and got up to put her plate with the half-eaten cake in the sink. As Beca turned to head upstairs, she noticed several bags waiting by the front door. True to her word, her complete saint-of-a-wife had indeed packed a bag for her. There were two large suitcases and two smaller suitcases waiting to be packed into the Range Rover in a few short hours. Beca knew that her wife had been busy today and made a mental note to make sure to thank her profusely in the morning for packing ten days-worth of clothing for the family of four. It couldn't have been easy to do singlehandedly with two young kids to deal with at the same time. Beca sighed heavily as her exhaustion hit her once again and trudged up the stairs towards the master suite. Carefully pushing the door open to minimize the noise, Beca peered inside the darkened room and squinted in the darkness. There were clearly two people in the bed, one an adult, and the other a small child. Beca smiled at the sight of two of her three favorite people, but a quiet cry coming from down the hall pulled her out of the adorable moment. Beca shut the door quietly and headed in the direction of the nursery.

The cries intensified somewhat, but Beca made it into the nursery just in time to prevent a full-fledged meltdown from happening. Closing the door behind her to prevent her wife from waking up, Beca frowned as she took in her four-month-old son crying in his crib.

"Oh, bubba what's going on in here?" Beca quietly questioned the crying baby. "I know for a fact that your mama just fed you maybe an hour ago, so you definitely aren't hungry."

The baby wiggled his legs furiously as Beca leaned over the crib and his cries stopped immediately as his mother lifted him out and held him to her chest. Sighing as the baby quieted and rested his head against her collarbone, she rubbed her hand along his back softly and kissed his head, bouncing slightly as she walked toward the oversized chair by the window. Beca took a deep breath in, inhaling that intoxicating scent that babies have and nuzzling the baby as he continued to settle against her. As she gingerly sat down in the chair, she tilted her head to see the baby's dark eyelashes flutter a bit as he struggled against sleep. Kissing his chubby cheek, she continued to rub his back until his breathing evened out and he fell soundly asleep. Settling more comfortably into the chair, Beca reached to her right and grabbed a blanket to cover the two of them. Making sure Alex was tucked in against her chest, Beca allowed her head to fall back against the soft chair and she closed her eyes for a moment, promising herself that she would just stay for a bit until she was sure the baby was asleep for the long haul. She couldn't wait to crawl into bed with her wife and sleep solidly for a few hours at least.

 _If only college Beca could see me now_ \- Beca muses as she opens her eyes to check on her son. She would never have imagined herself being a parent ten years ago, hell…five years ago if she was being honest, but life has a funny way of working out. As Beca gently strokes a finger along the soft skin of Alex's cheek, she can't help but sigh contentedly as she looks at the perfect baby asleep on her chest.

"Fuck…I think I've gotten a little soft since you came along." She muses, with a wry grin on her face. "I used to be Beca Effin' Mitchell. And don't tell mama I said fuck. Twice." She follows up in a secretive whisper.

Although her wife had carried the baby, they had used Beca's egg, so Alex was more or less a way smaller and definitely cuter version of the music producer. His dark brown hair was just starting to fill in thickly like his mom's, and when he was awake his dark blue eyes were investigating the world around him. He was a fairly serious baby for the most part, but unlike Beca, loved to snuggle and never ran out of smiles for his mothers and big brother. Beca attributed that to his other mother, whose smile could light up a room and absolutely turned Beca into a puddle of mush, no matter how much she tried to deny it. The day Alex was born was one of the happiest days of Beca's life, and she would gladly tell anyone that. Being a parent had softened her somewhat, although her sarcastic sense of humor and biting commentary had definitely not been altered now that she was a mother.

"I love you Alex." Beca whispered as sleep began to take over. "I'm sorry I wasn't here for bedtime bubba, I'll do better soon. I promise."

With one last kiss to the sleeping baby, Beca's eyes drifted shut as her exhaustion finally won out.


	3. Chapter 3

The alarm on the phone rang for a full twenty seconds before Chloe reached enough consciousness to poke one hand out from under the blanket and flail blindly for a few seconds before locating the offending device. Cracking open one eye Chloe managed to silence the alarm and placed her phone back on the bedside table. Sighing heavily, she closed her eye and rolled onto her back, not wanting to start the day just yet. Pushing a few stray curls out of her face, she opened both eyes this time and glanced to her left, where Jack was still sleeping soundly. Chloe smiled sleepily in spite of herself, mentally congratulating herself on how handsome her sleeping son was. The four- year-old looked like he was in the middle of a pretty great dream, so Chloe rolled onto her side and gave him a barely-there kiss on the crown of his head before pulling back the covers and swinging her body upright to sit on the edge of the bed. Chloe sat there for a moment while she swept her auburn hair into a messy bun, then stood to stretch her lithe body for a few minutes. She wasn't quite back to her pre-baby body but had recently resumed her morning jogs and was feeling much more like herself. Chloe's bare feet moved across the hardwood floor and she peeked out the window to make sure that her wife had indeed made it home at some point. The Range Rover was in the driveway so even though her wife was missing in action from their room, she knew that she was somewhere in the sprawling house. Chloe stooped down to pull a pair of sweatpants out of a drawer and slid them up and over her hips so they sat low on her waist. Satisfied that Jack was still sleeping soundly, Chloe pocketed her phone, taking note of what time it was. They needed to get the show on the road in order to leave for the airport on time.

The redhead opened the door to the hallway and stepped out into the hall, pausing for a minute to make sure the rest of the house was quiet. When she confirmed this, Chloe padded quietly down the stairs into the kitchen to make a much-needed pot of coffee. As Chloe pulled the coffee supplies from the cabinets, she glanced over to the couch, surprised to find it unoccupied. Usually that's where Beca ended up crashing after late nights and early mornings at the studio. However, a visual scan of the room confirmed that Beca's keys were sitting on a small table, and her shoes and messenger bag were there as well. With a yawn, Chloe finished loading the coffee and water into the expensive commercial coffee maker and pressed the button to begin the caffeination process. Pulling a couple of travel mugs down from the cabinet, Chloe placed them next to the coffee maker and went to go in search of her absentee wife.

As Chloe padded back up the stairs, she couldn't help but think of how little she had seen of Beca the past several weeks. Sure, she was used to taking care of things on the home front for the most part as Beca struggled to meet deadlines for the record label, but lately it seems as though they were two ships passing in the night. She couldn't fault her wife for having a successful career, but Chloe was definitely looking forward to ten days away from Beca's work so that they could focus on each other for a change. Chloe was about to head to the third-floor home office to see if Beca had ended up crashing up there, when she stopped to peer into the nursery to make sure the baby wasn't awake yet. He usually was awake and voicing his displeasure at waiting on Chloe to nurse him, so when Chloe turned the doorknob and opened the door, she was surprised to find her wife and son curled up in the oversized chair.

Chloe leaned against the doorway for a few minutes, her heart beating fiercely in her chest as she watched the loves of her life dozing away. The little family was still getting used to the sleep deprivation that came with having a new baby, but the good moments outweighed the tough ones for sure. Beca's arm was wrapped securely around Alex with both their faces tilted the same way, and Chloe studied her wife and son's features, marveling at the similarities between the two. After a few quiet moments during which Chloe pondered how she could possibly be this lucky, Alex seemed to sense Chloe's presence in the room, and started to squirm in Beca's arms. Chloe quickly closed the distance and sat down on the ottoman beside Beca's legs and leaning over, reached to take the baby from her wife.

Beca's grip on the baby tightened slightly and she opened her eyes to glare at her wife in mock-irritation.

"Hey gorgeous. Go find your own baby." Beca's voice was raspy with sleep, and she shut her eyes once again as she pressed a kiss to Alex's forehead. Beca pulled back and leaned her head back against the chair once more, pretending to fall back asleep.

Chloe laughed in spite of her wife's antics, leaning forward to first kiss Alex's cheek, then leaning forward further, placed a quick peck on her wife's lips.

"Last time I checked he was my baby. Quit being a baby hog." Chloe pecked her wife's lips a second time, and then ran a hand over the top of her son's fuzzy head. "Besides, unless your body magically decided to start producing breast milk in the past few hours, he's not gonna have much interest in you in a few minutes."

Chloe grinned as Beca pouted comically, her grin turning into a loving smile as Beca opened her eyes to look at her. Even as Beca blinked sleepily at her, Chloe couldn't help but appreciate how absolutely stunning her wife was as the early morning light came through the window, illuminating Beca's pale skin and making her dark blue eyes sparkle. Alex chose that moment to let out an indignant squawk, indicating that he was now ready for his morning feeding. Beca pouted even more fiercely, making Chloe grin again as she received the baby from her wife. Chloe settled the baby in her arms and pushed her shirt to the side so Alex could nurse.

"Betrayed by my boobs dude." Beca laughed and shook her head. "Is it wrong to be jealous right now?"

Chloe laughed, her laugh echoing through the nursery. "Hey if you're so keen to nurse the kid, how about you have the next one?"

Beca's eyes widened comically and she sat up fully from the chair. "How about let's make it to a year with Alex first before you put your evil plan in place to knock me up, Chlo." Beca rolled her neck, reaching up to rub a sore area for a few seconds. Sleeping on couches and chairs for the past few nights was doing a number on her body. "Don't get me wrong, I love our little dudes, but like, I'm definitely not in any rush to push a baby out of my tiny body."

Standing up, Beca draped the blanket across Chloe's shoulders then shifts so she is sitting slightly behind Chloe on the oversized ottoman, craning her neck to rest her chin on the redhead's shoulder. Beca lets her lips find the juncture where Chloe's neck meets her shoulder and allows them to linger there for a few seconds, watching in appreciation as goosebumps break out on Chloe's skin. Beca leaves another kiss there before wrapping her arms around Chloe's body so they are both cradling the baby boy.

"God…he really is fucking cute, isn't he?" Chloe can hear the pride in Beca's voice. "He clearly takes after his mom."

Chloe rolls her eyes but finds herself smiling at her wife's comments, then drops the smile and lays on the faux anger. "Rebecca. Beale. Mitchell. How many times have I told you not to drop the f-bomb in front of our children?"

Chloe can feel Beca trembling with silent laughter behind her.

"Sorry babe. Old habits die hard."

It is quiet for a few moments while both mothers watch the baby suckle. One of his tiny hands comes up to rest between Chloe's breasts and his eyes open sleepily and blink a few times. Chloe adjusts the baby so he's primarily in her left arm and brings her free hand up to grab Alex's tiny hand. The baby clutches onto her index finger. She runs her thumb across his tiny knuckles. Sighing, she closes her eyes and allows herself to lean back into Beca's embrace.

"Chlo?"

Chloe can feel Beca's lips along her neck again. She can sense Beca's uneasiness through the silence.

"Mmhm?"

It is quiet for a few beats while Beca kisses her way up to Chloe's ear. Beca tucks an errant curl that has escaped from her wife's messy bun behind her ear, then leaves a kiss there.

"I'm sorry I've been working so much." Beca says quietly. "The execs are putting a lot of pressure on Charlie and me to produce at a high level and it's just really…"

Chloe turns her head and cuts off Beca's rambling apology with a kiss to the corner of Beca's mouth. She appreciates that Beca is trying to make amends for her absences of late, but a glance to the vintage clock on the wall tells her now is not the time and the place to hash this out.

"It's fine Beca." Chloe shifts the baby to her other breast and makes sure he latches on. "We can talk later."

Beca is slightly put off by Chloe's insistence to table the topic for now, but she glances down at her son with a smile and shakes it off. They sit quietly for a few more minutes while Alex nurses hungrily.

"We need to get a move on Beca. Jack is still sleeping and he needs a bath and we need to be in the car in an hour and a half and on the way to LAX for our flight. Aubrey would kill us if we miss our flight. You know she sent us all individual itineraries customized down to fifteen minutes intervals? In military time of course…" Chloe muses. She then feels the loss of contact from behind her as Beca moves to stand up. "Plus, this lil guy needs to be burped and changed…" Chloe's voice trails off as the smaller woman moves towards the door.

"So…divide and conquer then?" Beca questions, as she leans against the doorframe.

"Yep. Sounds good." Chloe confirms. "I started coffee downstairs too, by the way."

Beca gives her a smile and then takes a couple steps back into the room to give Chloe a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Ahh yes…sweet caffeine." Beca grins, pumping her fist. "I knew there was a reason I married ya Beale." With a sassy glance back at her wife Beca exits the room and heads down the hallway towards the master bedroom.

"It's Mitchell now babe!" Chloe calls after her. "Last time I checked, anyway."

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up Chloe." Comes Beca's grumpy reply from down the hall. "Let's get a move on then Mrs. Mitchell. We've got a Bellas reunion to get to!"

Chloe laughs and looks down to find Alex grinning up at her.

"Oh great…you think your mom is funny, huh?" Chloe shakes her head in disbelief. "We can't let her know that, she'll get a big head." Chloe adjusts her shirt and stands with the infant. "Okay Baby Mitchell, let's go to Hawaii, huh?"

Alex coos and waves his tiny fists and Chloe can't help but laugh at the little guy. "Don't get so excited Alex, you haven't met your crazy aunts. We were a hot ticket back in the day."

Chloe smiles at the thought of the Bellas being together once again and being able to catch up after a number of years, then starts moving toward the changing table to get the baby ready for the day. The Mitchells have a plane to catch.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN- Hey guys...so I just realized I hadn't prefaced this story with anything, and just kind of posted it. This story will essentially be my take on if they made a 4th movie, how I'd want it to go. So basically my own selfish storylines with the characters we all love. It's been a while since I've been on this site, basically a 4 year hiatus, so it will take me a bit to get back into the swing of things. Bear with me. Also just a heads up that I'll be on vacation for the rest of the week and traveling, so there may not be another update on this story until early next week. Thanks so much for the faves and follows so far. It means a lot. Happy reading ;)**

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Chloe was pleasantly surprised that the small family had in fact made it to the airport and through security with plenty of time to spare. Both women had been able to grab another cup of coffee, which, especially for Beca, was a crucial part of the morning. It also helped that since they were flying first-class due to Beca's frequent flyer/celebrity status, they were comfortably seated in two rows across from each other and buckling in for the flight. Chloe currently had Alex strapped to her chest in the baby carrier, with an empty seat next to her that they had purchased for extra space. Traveling with two young kids meant traveling with a lot of stuff, so both women were used to buying the extra seat to spread out and be comfortable for longer flights. After getting all the necessities for the kids within arms reach for both women, Chloe unstrapped the baby carrier and settled back into the airplane seat. She reached to the empty seat next to her and grabbed a thin blanket, so she could nurse Alex as the plane started to move from the gate. She had read somewhere that nursing your baby during takeoff and landing helps the baby with the changes in pressure. Making sure Alex was in the proper position, she closed her eyes for a few seconds before she heard laughter from the seats across the aisle. Glancing to her left, she checked on her wife and young son who seemed to be having a grand time so far, as they both bent over an iPad playing some game.

"What are you two up to?" She questioned. "Jack has his seatbelt on, right Becs?"

Beca looked up from the game briefly and rolled her eyes at her wife. Reaching down, she grabbed the belt across the boy's lap and gave it a gentle shake to prove that the strap was in fact fastened.

"Yep." Beca replied, with a smirk. "Seatbelts have been fastened, Captain Chloe." She gave Chloe a quick salute and a wink, which made Chloe roll her eyes in response.

Jack giggled a bit at Beca's reply and gave his mother a thumbs up.

"Mom made me put my seatbelt on as soon as I sat down Mama." He said emphatically. "And she said I have to wear it the whole time."

Beca handed the iPad to Jack and ruffled his brown hair. "Yeah, that is the rule my man." Fastening her own seatbelt more tightly as the plane started to pick up speed down the runway, Beca then gripped her armrest in a white-knuckle grip. As often as she traveled for work, she still hated to fly.

Chloe saw her wife's death grip on the armrest. She knew that Beca would make every attempt to put on a brave face for Jack, but that Beca absolutely hated flying, especially the takeoff and landing. Adjusting Alex slightly in her arms, she reached out across the aisle and gave her wife's hand a gentle pat before taking Beca's hand in hers. Lacing their fingers together, Chloe stroked her thumb slowly across Beca's hand, hoping that the gentle motion would ease her wife's nervous energy.

"Breathe babe." Chloe says softly. "Just breathe."

Beca's eyelashes fluttered as she closed her eyes for a moment. Chloe watched as her jaw clenched and unclenched several times. The plane lifted into the air, bumping and jostling the passengers as it did so. Chloe continued to stroke her thumb across Beca's hand, willing her wife to calm down. After another minute or so the turbulence evened out as the plane continued to gain altitude, and Chloe could feel most of the tension starting to leave Beca's hand.

Beca turned her head towards Chloe and exhaled. "This never gets any easier Chlo."

Chloe gave her wife a sympathetic smile. "I know babe. You practically sat in my lap that time we flew over for the USO tour."

"Mmm yeah…that did happen." Beca recalls with a wry smile. "Or maybe that was just my way of getting closer to you. Or trying to anyway. You know…because I was incapable of telling you I had a massive thing for you back then."

Chloe's face broke into a dazzling smile, the one that makes Beca's breath catch in her throat each time.

"Well, the feeling was mutual Becs." She gives Beca's hand a squeeze. "And still is." Adjusting the baby at her breast, she peeks down under the blanket to make sure Alex is okay. The baby wiggles against her but settles down and continues feeding. Chloe looks back up and over at Beca once again. "Still have a _massive_ thing for you Mitchell." She teases.

Beca laughs and gives Chloe a wink. "Yeah yeah…keep it in your pants Chlo." Taking a shaky breath, she pulls her hand from Chloe's grasp and wipes her sweaty palm against her jeans. "Thanks babe."

Chloe merely responds with a quick smile and a shrug. She fixes her top under the blanket then moves the blanket aside, bringing Alex up to rest on her shoulder. The baby's eyes immediately start to look around the unfamiliar surroundings and his gaze settles on the brunette across the aisle. Alex begins to wiggle in Chloe's arms which makes her giggle. "I know bubs, you just want your mom, huh?" Chloe raises the baby to her shoulder and pats him on the back. After a few moments the baby lets out a lusty burp and Chloe can hear Jack giggle across the aisle. "Ok Becs, baby incoming."

With an easy smile, Beca turns slightly in her seat to receive the squirming baby. She gives Alex a loud kiss on his chubby cheek and settles him in her arms. Chloe can see the rest of the tension melt out of Beca's body as she bounces the baby slightly while making silly faces at her son. Alex smiles back at Beca and coos happily as Beca leans down to kiss his belly a few times. Jack squirms in his seat next to Beca for a few seconds before finally deciding he's comfortable leaning up against her. Chloe watches all this for a moment, smiling to herself when Beca's arm stretches out to rest on Jack's shoulders. Content to study her wife and boys interacting for a while, Chloe angles herself so she's able to watch them, instead of having to keep her head turned.

With a smile playing on her lips, Chloe can't help but think of how far Beca had come in the past several years. Their little family had started in a somewhat unconventional way, but now as Chloe watched Beca making silly faces at both her boys, she couldn't help but think that the way it all happened had been perfect for them in the end. Chloe's mind starts to drift back to one of the hardest days of her life.

 _Chloe chewed on her lower lip as she glanced at her phone for what seemed like the thousandth time. Fat Amy had told her Beca usually got home from work by 8pm at the latest, but Beca was nowhere to be found. Although, Chloe thought, why would she, since Beca had not the slightest idea that Chloe was even in Los Angeles, let alone waiting on the front steps for her. In the months following their USO tour, Beca and Chloe had drifted apart, partially due to Beca's newfound stardom, and partially due to Chloe's relationship with Chicago as well as beginning veterinary school. But none of that mattered now. Chloe was here…in Los Angeles…waiting on a certain brunette to come home. And that certain brunette had no idea._

 _"Maybe I should just text her." Chloe mutters to herself. Sighing, she pulls out her phone and opens her messages, thumbs poised to tap out a message. But after a moment of hesitation she groans and drops her phone onto the step beside her. Running a hand through her hair she takes a moment to gather herself. This whole situation had gotten totally out of control, and Chloe knew she was only to blame. She had never meant to let Beca slip away. But so much had happened in the past week, and Chloe honestly didn't know where to turn, except to her former best friend, who Chloe had been attracted to since the first time Beca had stopped by the Barden Bellas table at the activities fair. Chloe closed her eyes and tries to remember just how their first interaction had gone. Then Chloe remembers how she had discovered that Beca could sing, a smile appearing on her face as she reminisces about Beca's naked body in the steamy shower as the two young women sang together._

 _Chloe's smile fades as she thinks about how things have changed. So much has changed. Chloe knew that there was an attraction, a sort of chemistry between the two women, but had never been able to get Beca to confirm. Their relationship had gotten so complicated with the song and dance around their attraction going on and on for several years, and this had caused Chloe to run to Chicago. Chicago was a nice enough guy, with a noble profession serving his country. Chloe had accepted their relationship for what it was. Convenience. When Chicago was stateside, it was nice to come home to a warm body in your bed. But then he got deployed, and things had gotten hard. And then other things had happened, and he broke it off, and here she was a little over a week later, waiting on a hope and a prayer for her former best friend to come home._

 _Just as Chloe was about to get up and get back into her car to try and find a hotel, a grey SUV came cruising down the street, slowing slightly before turning into the driveway._

 _"Shit." Chloe sucked in a sharp breath and picked up her phone, tucking it into her back pocket as she stood up. Suddenly her palms were sweaty, and she wiped them hastily down the thighs of her jeans, as she heard the car door slam shut. Chloe's heart began to race as the petite brunette walked around the front of the car and towards the front door where Chloe was waiting._

 _Beca took one look at who was waiting on the front steps and stopped, pocketing her car keys and shifting the strap of her messenger bag higher on her shoulder._

 _"Holy shit. Chlo!" Beca grinned and walked quickly to where the taller woman was waiting nervously. Out of habit, she immediately held her arms out and Chloe followed suit, allowing herself to be pulled in for a warm embrace. Chloe couldn't help but wrap her arms tightly around Beca, allowing herself a moment to breathe in the familiar sent of the younger woman._

 _Neither woman moved for a solid minute, both reveling in the closeness of the other as they both realized how much they had missed each other. Chloe suddenly found herself blinking back hot tears and pulled back to try and brush them away before Beca could notice._

 _"So…um…surprise?"_

 _Beca laughed, dropping her bag onto the walkway. "Um, yeah you could say that." She pulled her keys out of her pocket and twisted the key ring around her hand while studying the redhead. "How did you get here? W-why are you here?" Beca looks nervous for a second then immediately follows her questions up. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, its just we kind of lost touch and then here you are…" Beca looks up with those dark blue eyes and waits for Chloe to provide some sort of explanation._

 _Chloe's heart is threatening to beat out of her chest at this point._ This was crazy- _she thinks to herself. She swallows thickly and points to her car that is parked on the curb by Beca's mailbox. "Um, I sort of drove."_

 _Beca's eyes widen. "You're shitting me! You drove all the way from New York?"_

 _Chloe flushes in embarrassment, looking down at the sidewalk. "I didn't know where else to go." She says quietly, as tears begin to burn in her eyes once again. "I…I messed up Beca."_

 _Seeing the tears forming in her best friend's eyes, Beca is quick to close the distance, raising her hand to rest on Chloe's arm in a gentle caress._

 _"Hey…Chlo…hey…. it's okay. Come here." With a sigh she pulls the redhead into her arms and then pulls them both down so they're sitting on the steps. She reaches up to tangle one hand into Chloe's auburn curls and wraps her other arm tightly around the crying woman. She simply holds the older woman as Chloe cries into her chest. Beca tries to get Chloe to calm down by stroking her back, and after a few minutes Chloe seems to have composed herself somewhat._

 _Beca's heart nearly breaks as Chloe raises her tear-stained face, her bright blue eyes now red and swimming with unshed tears. Beca moves her hand from Chloe's hair and uses her thumb to brush away some of the tears from Chloe's face._

 _"What's going on Chloe? Why aren't you back in New York?" Beca asks gently. "You're scaring me."_

 _Chloe hastily attempts to brush some of the tears away. She doesn't want to admit what she's about to, but she knows she needs to. This will inevitably change everything between the two of them. Taking another few seconds to compose herself, she decides it's now or never. Raising her head to look at those worried blue eyes, she takes a breath and blurts it out._

 _"_ _I…I'm pregnant Beca."_


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the positive feedback on this story so far. I'm glad you guys are enjoying it. And just so it's clear from here on out (since I'll be using flashbacks to fill in a lot of Beca/Chloe's backstory) any time there's sections in italics, those are flashbacks. Good? Great. Happy reading.**

* * *

 _"I…I'm pregnant Beca."_

 _Chloe's heart nearly stops when she feels Beca stiffen up at her admission. She swears she hears Beca stop breathing for a few seconds. It is only when Beca exhales gently and her warm breath brushes past Chloe's ear that Chloe finally feels the relief at her secret being out in the open. Beca's arm wraps tightly around her back again, and Chloe allows herself to be drawn into Beca's chest. Resting her cheek against Beca's collarbone, Chloe's tears begin to fall again._

 _Beca just sits there, holding Chloe tight, her fingertips occasionally trailing across Chloe's back in an attempt to provide some comfort to her sobbing friend. In that moment, Beca didn't know what to think. But the bottom line was Chloe trusted her with this burden, and all that mattered was the crying woman in her arms. Beca lets her head drop slightly, allowing her lips to find Chloe's forehead, lingering there for a few seconds. With one more kiss there for good measure, Beca brings her hand to rest on Chloe's cheek. It is flushed and wet with hot tears. Running her hand along Chloe's cheek to brush away some tears, Beca then moves her hand to lift Chloe's head slightly so that she can make sure that Chloe is eye to eye with her._

 _Chloe's eyes are red and full of unshed tears, but the bright blue that Beca had come to love over the past several years is still there, making Beca's heart flutter._

 _"It's ok Chlo." Beca brushes her knuckles gently along Chloe's cheek again, wiping fresh tears away. "It's ok." She repeats, pressing another kiss to Chloe's hairline._

 _It is quiet for several minutes, and Chloe finally manages to get her tears under control, sighing deeply and wrapping her arms tighter around Beca. Chloe takes a shaky breath in, then exhales slowly._

 _"It's his I assume?" Beca questions softly. "Chicago…I mean."_

 _Chloe can't bring herself to verbally respond, so she settles for nodding against Beca's chest. Chloe can feel Beca's hand stop moving against her back for several seconds, and she swears she can feel Beca's brain trying to process this information._

 _After a moment, Beca's hand resumes its soothing motion against Chloe's back._

 _"How pregnant are you?"_

 _Chloe can't help but grin despite herself at the way Beca phrases her question._

 _"Eight weeks."_

 _Beca processes this next piece of information and gently releases her arms from around Chloe. Running a hand through her dark hair, she stands. Taking a few steps to where her bag had been unceremoniously dropped to the walkway, Beca bends down and picks up her messenger bag. Adjusting the strap to a comfortable place on her shoulder, Beca then steps back towards Chloe. She gives Chloe a tired smile and reaches her hand out toward the woman still sitting on the front steps._

 _"Come on Chlo." Beca wiggles her fingers in invitation. "Let's get you inside."_

 _Chloe takes in a big breath and lets it out slowly. With a watery smile she reaches out and takes a hold of Beca's outstretched hand, allowing it to guide her up and onto her feet. She feels Beca's hand move to the small of her back guiding her up the few steps to the door. There's a brief loss of contact as Beca uses both hands to jiggle the key in the lock. Once the door is open, Beca's hand returns to the small of her back and ushers her inside the home._

 _Beca drops her keys and messenger back just inside the door. Turning to lock the door behind her, Beca returns to Chloe's side and gestures to the spacious living area._

 _"Make yourself at home." Beca looks embarrassed as she runs her hand through her hair nervously. Sometimes she can't believe that this is her life, still feeling like the angsty college freshman who had a chip on her shoulder. But now she was a semi-successful recording artist who owned her own home. "The interior designer went a little overboard, but…it's home, you know?"_

 _Chloe takes a few steps into the open concept room and looks around the impeccably decorated space, seeing bits and pieces of Beca's personality interspersed with the high- end finishes. Her eyes fall on a side table next to her, and Chloe runs her finger along the smooth wood before picking up the framed picture closest to her. Chloe can't help but smile when she sees a picture of the Bellas after their World Championship win. Her gaze immediately focuses in on her and Beca in the forefront of the picture, with the other Bellas grinning widely on either side of them. Beca's arm is around Chloe's shoulder, with Chloe clearly grinning as she kisses Beca's cheek. Chloe smiles wistfully, remembering the emotions she had felt in that moment, emotions ranging from sheer elation to giddy excitement. There were so many fond memories of performing with the Bellas, and Chloe knew that a large portion of those memories also were due to her relationship with Beca. They had been through a lot together. Putting down the picture frame where she had found it, Chloe looks back to find Beca looking at her expectantly, leaning against the kitchen island._

 _"Sounds like we have a lot of things to catch up on."_

 _Chloe nods, taking a few hesitant steps toward the brunette. "I honestly don't even know where to start." She takes her bottom lip between her teeth, chewing nervously._

 _Beca gives her a sympathetic smile. "Well…I don't know about you, but I could use some food." She gestures towards the large refrigerator to her right. "How about I make us something to eat and then we can talk?"_

 _Chloe smiles in response, grateful that Beca is allowing her some more time to compose her thoughts. Nodding, she follows Beca into the kitchen and leans up against the granite counter. "I could definitely eat." Chloe slips her hands into her pockets and looks at Beca, who is now standing in front of the open fridge trying to assess the contents. "Wait…you cook now?"_

 _Beca rolls her eyes. "I've been living on my own out here for almost a year Chlo." She pulls out some vegetables and places them on the counter. "I had to learn sometime, right?" Closing the fridge, Beca reaches up into the cabinet and begins pulling out items to prepare dinner. "I'm basically a fully functioning adult now." Beca gives her a shrug and starts to cut up the veggies._

 _Chloe laughs lightly and moves to stand next to Beca at the counter. "I'll believe it when I see it." She gives Beca a wink and a gentle bump with her hip. "This better not be a repeat of when you gave us all food poisoning trying to make dinner for the whole Bella house."_

 _Beca's face goes red and she turns to face Chloe, her mock anger displayed across her face. "That was ONE TIME Chloe!" She waves the knife emphatically to make her point. Rolling her eyes once again she returns to chopping the vegetables, her movements deliberate and calculated._

 _Chloe laughs and wraps her arms around the smaller woman. Teasing Beca will never get old for her. Planting a quick kiss on Beca's cheek she rolls her sleeves up. "What can I help with?"_

 _"Well, you can start by grabbing some pasta from the pantry over there." Beca gestures with the knife._

 _Chloe follows instructions, returning a few seconds later with a box of pasta. Placing it on the counter, she leans back, the small of her back resting against the granite once again. She watches Beca, observing as her friend continues to cut up veggies for their dinner. She knows that they have a lot to talk about, but just being in such close proximity to Beca has made Chloe feel infinitely better about the state of things. Chloe knows that their relationship will be put to the test, but she also has a feeling that Beca will be there for her no matter what._

The plane jolts and Chloe is pulled from her memories. Realizing that she had been daydreaming for quite some time, she glances across the aisle to make sure that Beca isn't freaking out about the turbulence that the plane is currently experiencing. When her gaze falls upon her wife, she knows that everyone is fine. A smile spreads across Chloe's face.

Beca has reclined the seats and is snuggled up with Alex on her chest. Jack is tucked into her side, with Beca's headphones on, and clearly close to sleep as his eyes are almost closed. Chloe can't help herself, and without giving it a second thought, she quickly unbuckles her seatbelt and crosses the aisle to join the snugglefest. Lifting Jack into her arms she sits down next to her wife and settles into the seat, making sure Jack is comfortable in her lap. He sighs contentedly and snuggles his face into her neck. Chloe kisses the top of his head and turns her head to look at Beca.

Beca senses her wife studying her and turns slightly. Chloe has a look of total adoration on her face, and it's a look that Beca admittedly hadn't seen very much lately. Shifting her son on her chest, she looks back at Chloe.

"Stop staring at me you nerd." Beca can't finish her sentence without a grin. "I know we're cute and all, but it's kind of weird Chlo." Craning her neck, she is able to close the distance to kiss Chloe.

Chloe pulls back with a happy smile and settles herself and Jack more comfortably into the large seat. After she deems herself comfortable, Chloe checks to make sure Jack is asleep and reaches for her wife's hand. With a sigh of contentment, Chloe lets her head fall onto Beca's shoulder. Her eyes close, and the small family spends the rest of the flight in relative comfort.

* * *

The rest of the flight passes fairly quickly. Alex has a minor meltdown as the plane is landing, so Chloe juggles dealing with the baby as well as Beca's anxiety for several minutes at the tail end of the flight. Jack was thankfully as good as gold for the entire flight, so Chloe made a mental note to reward the little guy with some one-on-one time as soon as it was possible. As soon as the plane made it to the gate, Chloe releases her seatbelt and passes Beca the baby carrier with her free hand.

"Here Beca. You're up for Alex duty."

Beca nods and dutifully begins strapping the carrier to her chest. She tightens a few of the straps and then turns to receive her wiggling son from Chloe. Blowing a raspberry on his belly she grins at his tiny giggle and carefully straps the baby to her chest. Satisfied that the baby is secure, she kisses the top of Alex's head then turns to help Jack pack up the headphones and iPad. They wait for the rest of the passengers to get off the plane, then head off themselves, with Chloe holding Jack's hand as they walk up the jetway into the terminal.

They haven't made it too far into the terminal before Beca is stopped to sign a few autographs. She is gracious like always, but refuses to allow the fans to take pictures, as Alex is currently strapped to her chest. Beca and Chloe had decided that they didn't want their children's pictures to be on the internet, so it was a constant battle between the paparazzi and fans to keep some level of anonymity. Beca would be lying if she said she is used to being famous, but she usually handled herself well in public and tried to accommodate her fans whenever possible.

Chloe stands off to the side and watches the interactions between her wife and the few fans. Sometimes she forgets that Beca is a celebrity, which is still a strange concept to her. Jack gives her hand a tug and she bends down to talk to him.

"What's up handsome?"

"Are we gonna go to the pool soon?"

Chloe chuckles at her son's excitement and nods in affirmation. "Yeah, real soon bud." She glances over to where Beca is signing one last autograph. "Mom's almost done and then we just have to get our bags and then we'll go straight to the pool, okay?"

The answer seems to be enough for the boy, and he smiles widely, looking so much like his father that Chloe almost can't believe it. In Chloe's mind, Jack is more Beca's son than Chicago's, so whenever Chloe catches glimpses of the soldier in her son it takes her by surprise.

Beca's hand on the small of her back startles Chloe, who straightens up, immediately linking their hands together.

"Sorry about that babe."

Chloe gives a shrug, knowing that Beca can't control these situations occurring.

"It's all good. Let's go grab our bags." She nods her head towards the sign marked "Baggage Claim" and the women make their way toward the area. "Aubrey said she'd meet us by the bag claim and then I guess she has arranged for a car to the resort." Chloe tries to remember the details from the very specific itinerary her blonde friend had put together for the group. "I think she and Stacie arrived earlier, and the rest of the girls are flying in later tonight or early tomorrow."

"Oh cool." Beca replies. "Is Stacie bringing Bella?"

"Mhmm, I think so. Aubrey had mentioned it if I remember correctly."

Stacie's daughter was almost a couple years older than Jack, but Beca was glad there was another Bella kid around his age to play with.

They made their way to the baggage claim and after a surprisingly short amount of time had collected their bags, car seats, and stroller. Just as Chloe had dragged the last bag to where Beca was waiting with the kids, she feels a pair of arms wrap around her.

A familiar shriek of excitement lets her know that one Aubrey Posen is currently hugging her, and Chloe laughs loudly and turns so she can reciprocate the hug.

"Bree! It's been way too long!" Chloe releases her grip on her best friend, and steps back to take in the sight of one of her oldest friends. "Oh my god, you look great!"

Aubrey smiles widely and pulls Chloe in for another bone-crushing hug. "Thanks Chlo. You're one to talk by the way. You're looking like freshman year Chloe, and you literally just had a baby like four months ago! I don't know how you do it."

Chloe chuckles as Aubrey turns and jogs excitedly to where Beca is standing. Her chuckles turn to a full-on laugh when she sees Beca turn away slightly from Aubrey and shield the baby on her chest.

"Easy there Posen." Beca laughs as Aubrey's arms wrap around her in a side hug, being careful not to squish Alex. "Precious cargo here."

Aubrey releases Beca and peers in at Alex. She squeals excitedly at the baby peering back at her. "Beca Mitchell, you have exactly ten seconds to hand over this extremely adorable boy so he can meet his Auntie Aubrey."

Beca grins at Aubrey's demand and unstraps one side of the carrier so that her friend can lift the baby from his special spot. She watches Aubrey take Alex in her arms, her friend's eyes widening as she finally gets a good look at the baby. Chloe slips her arm around Beca's waist and both women observe as Aubrey bounces the baby in her arms. Chloe had maintained a strong friendship with Aubrey over the years, and although they lived on opposite coasts, they both managed to set aside time to chat at least once a week. Chloe had been there for Aubrey on many an occasion and vice versa. Chloe hadn't seen Aubrey in person for several months, so she was extremely glad to be able to spend time with Aubrey before all the other Bellas arrived.

"I don't know how you two have managed to produce two of the cutest humans alive." Aubrey teases. She gives Jack a small wave and he jumps towards her, eventually settling for giving Aubrey's legs a hug. "Who would have known that alt-girl Beca Mitchell with her ear monstrosities would eventually settle down and marry my best friend?"

Beca rolls her eyes as she feels Chloe laughing beside her. "Very funny Bree. You remind me of that _literally_ every time you see me."

Aubrey gives Alex a kiss on his cheek and her eyes turn serious. She looks at Beca and Chloe. "I'm really happy to see you two."

Chloe reaches out and gives Aubrey's arm a squeeze. "We're happy to see you too." Chloe shares a meaningful look with her best friend.

Beca smiles at the interaction, knowing that Chloe has truly missed being able to spend time with her close friend. She would never admit it, but she also misses Aubrey, as much as the two have butted heads over the years. Clearing her throat, she extends her hand toward the blonde woman. "Okay…that's enough feelings for one day. What do you say we head to the hotel and get checked in?"

Aubrey nods, moving Alex so he is tucked against her hip. She nods her head towards the automatic doors that lead to the terminal exit. "The driver is waiting outside. Stacie is very excited to see you guys."

Chloe grabs onto Jack's hand and wheels the cart with their luggage toward the exit, following Beca and Aubrey.

"When did Stacie's flight get in?" Chloe asks.

There's a brief pause. "Oh, um, we flew in together last night." Aubrey glances back at Chloe. Even from her vantage point slightly behind her friend, Chloe can see a slight blush on Aubrey's face. "And Bella. She came too."

In her peripheral vision, Chloe can see Beca trying to cover a grin, clearly amused by Aubrey's embarrassment. Chloe gives her wife a gentle smack on the arm and shoots her a look. The grin disappears from Beca's face, but Chloe makes a mental note to get the dirt on the Aubrey and Stacie situation sooner than later. She follows the blonde outside, where they are immediately hit with the warm Hawaiian air. Chloe puts on her sunglasses and follows Aubrey towards the large SUV that is waiting to take them to their resort. As a staff member from the resort loads their suitcases into the car, Beca comes over and wraps her arm around Chloe's waist.

"You excited babe?"

"Mhmm. It will be so great to see everyone again." Chloe gives Beca a quick peck on the cheek. "The Bellas will be back together."

Beca bumps her hip against Chloe's. "If you tell anyone this I'll deny it, but I can't wait. I miss those bitches."

Chloe giggles and gives her wife a pat on the butt. "I knew you'd eventually come around. Let's get in the car and get this party started."

Beca grins and follows her redheaded wife towards the vehicle. "You know…I'm slightly concerned that we're subjecting our kids to a Bella reunion this early on in life."

Chloe rolls her eyes as she climbs into the car, stopping to double check the straps on Alex's car seat are buckled properly before she sits down, pulling Beca down beside her.

"You know you love it babe."

Beca pulls her seatbelt on, then looks behind her where Aubrey is reading a book with Jack. She smiles.

"Yeah…I kinda do."


	6. Chapter 6

It is mid-afternoon by the time the SUV pulls into the resort, but thanks to Aubrey's preparedness, it only takes moments before the family of four is in their suite. Both parents are tired due to jetlag, but Beca is feeling the effects of the many long days and nights at work, combined with the exhaustion that only traveling can cause. Knowing that she is definitely going to need a nap in order to be somewhat coherent at dinner later, she tries to be helpful and unpack some of the necessary items for the rest of the evening while Chloe takes some time to feed Alex. Jack has laid down on the king-sized bed beside Chloe, and Beca can tell that his enthusiasm for swimming has waned somewhat, as his eyelids are beginning to droop. Smiling to herself, Beca straightens up and goes to join her wife and kids on the large bed. She flops down dramatically beside Jack, groaning in relief as soon as her body makes contact with the soft bed.

Jack giggles sleepily, and Beca rolls onto her side, pulling the boy closer to her and pressing a kiss to his temple. Beca watches as Chloe settles more comfortably against the headboard, kicking off her shoes and pulling her legs up onto the bed.

"Looks like someone needs a bit of a nap before hitting the pool." Chloe muses, reaching over to smooth a hand over Jack's hair.

Jack opens his mouth to protest, but he is betrayed by the large yawn that quickly overtakes him.

Beca and Chloe chuckle, but Chloe notices how her wife tries to stifle a yawn behind her hand. It is quiet for a few moments while Chloe finishes feeding Alex, and when he is done she raises him to her shoulder and tries to coax a burp from him. Another glance at her older son lets Chloe know that Jack has indeed succumbed to sleep, and he has curled into Beca's chest. Chloe can tell that Beca is fighting sleep as well.

"Beca, go ahead and nap." Chloe urges quietly, shifting Alex from her shoulder to the bed, where he lays happily between Beca and Chloe. Chloe rubs the baby's belly for a few seconds, smiling as Alex squirms and coos.

"We just got here Chlo. I want to spend some time with you guys, not sleep this whole trip away."

"It's fine Beca. I know you're tired. I'll go meet up with Aubrey and have a drink and catch up with her for a bit."

Beca sighs, but another yawn verifies that she is quickly losing the battle against her exhaustion. She gingerly reaches behind her to where her phone is sitting on the nightstand and spends a few seconds setting an alarm. She drops the phone on the bed beside her and looks up at Chloe.

"Are you sure?"

Chloe nods, leaning down to kiss her wife and older son on their cheeks. "Yep. You guys stay here and get some rest and then we can meet up at the pool for a bit before dinner. I'll even bring Alex with me, so you don't have to worry about him."

Beca smiles tiredly at her wife, once again thankful for Chloe and all she does for their family. Glancing over at the baby who has now joined his big brother in sleeping, she stifles a chuckle.

"Umm, too late Chlo. Looks like bubs is joining us for nap time."

Chloe smiles and moves off the bed, turning around to pick up the now-sleeping infant and place him gently in the portable crib the hotel has provided. After making sure he's settled, she bends down and gives Alex a kiss on the forehead. When she's confirmed the baby is asleep, Chloe turns back to find Beca nearly asleep. Chloe walks over to the brunette sprawled out on the bed and bends down to give Beca a quick peck on the lips. Beca's brow furrows somewhat, and her eyes open briefly.

"I just need an hour maybe. I'll be good to go after a power nap." Beca mumbles sleepily.

Chloe pats her wife on the cheek. "Take a nap Becs. I'll meet you guys down at the pool in a bit, ok?"

"Mhmm." Beca replies, her eyes closing again.

Chloe takes a few minutes to change into her bathing suit, then tosses a thin cover-up on. Glancing back over her shoulder, she sees that Beca and Jack are both fast asleep. She grabs her phone and texts Aubrey, telling her to meet up at the pool in a few minutes. Aubrey replies within seconds, and Chloe locates a pair of sandals and slips them on. Making sure she has one of the room keys, Chloe glances back at her sleeping wife and children, then heads out to catch up with her dear friend.

* * *

It only takes Chloe a few minutes to make her way down to the pool area, where Aubrey has reserved a few cabanas for the duration of the trip. She sees her blonde friend across the pool and negotiates her way toward the shaded area.

"Oh my god, Chloe!"

Chloe turns her head to where the exclamation came from and sees Stacie in the shallow end of the pool with her daughter. She can't help but smile widely as Stacie hurriedly tries to make her way to the edge of the pool, easily hauling herself out and running over to capture Chloe in a very drippy hug. Chloe laughs loudly, returning the embrace even though Stacie is dripping water all over her. The two women part and Chloe gives Stacie a once-over with her eyes, taking in the extremely skimpy black bikini that Stacie is currently rocking. Chloe can't help but be slightly jealous of how Stacie's body is still ultra-toned, and it looks as though Stacie hasn't aged a day since the last time Chloe had seen her in person.

"It's good to see you Stacie." Chloe pulls her friend in for another hug. "It's been a couple years."

The last time Chloe had seen Stacie was when she and Beca had gotten married. Stacie nods. "It sure has. It's good to see you too Chloe. Where'd you leave your wife?"

"She's upstairs taking a nap. The jetlag really did a number on her."

"You must have worn her out joining the mile-high club." Stacie replies, giving Chloe a wink.

Chloe is used to Stacie's sexual humor, so she laughs good naturedly at the leggy brunette, who glances over her shoulder and motions to the small girl who is making her way toward the two women. Stacie's face lights up with a genuine smile and she squats down and wraps her arm around the child who is a miniature version of her mother.

"Bella, this is Mommy's friend Chloe. We go way back. You met her once when you were little, but you probably don't remember." Stacie gives her daughter's hand a squeeze, and Bella looks up at Chloe.

"Nice to meet you." She says with a shy smile.

Chloe smiles in return. "Nice to meet you too Bella. Last time I saw you, you were just a baby."

Bella smiles, looking a lot like her mother. "I don't remember, but I was probably too little." Bella looks up at her mother, changing topics. "When is Aubrey gonna come play in the pool with us Mommy?"

Stacie straightens up, and glances over where Aubrey is now standing by the cabana, waiting for Chloe. Aubrey gives a small wave and a brief smile at the group.

Chloe notices Stacie's face soften into a happy smile as she waves back at Aubrey. Stacie turns her daughter back in the direction of the pool. "In a little bit baby. She's gonna talk with Chloe for a bit and then I bet we can convince her to come play."

This answer seems to satisfy the little girl, who turns and skips back toward the pool. "Come on Mommy!"

Stacie laughs and turns back to Chloe, raising her hand to rest on Chloe's upper arm. "We'll catch up at dinner, yeah?"

Chloe nods in affirmation then heads over to where Aubrey is waiting. Both women sit down on lounge chairs, kicking back and taking in the beautiful sights around them for a few moments. Out of her peripheral vision, Chloe notices Aubrey watching Stacie and Bella splashing around in the shallow end with a huge smile on her face. Chloe turns in her chair so that she is facing her friend.

"Okay Posen. Spill."

Aubrey turns to Chloe, with a surprised expression on her face. She blushes slightly, and opens her mouth a few times, finally closing it while she composes her thoughts.

"We…Stacie and I…we're living together." Aubrey suddenly seems very interested in the corner of the towel that is draped over the back of her lounge chair. She plays with it for a few seconds before looking up and studying the redhead who is looking at her expectantly. After a few more seconds she lets out a gentle exhale then makes eye contact with Chloe finally. "We're dating. We have been for almost two years now."

Chloe tries to mask her surprise at Aubrey's confession, but it gets the better of her. She strongly suspected that Aubrey and Stacie had some sort of thing going on romantically, but she never anticipated that Aubrey would confess to it so easily, let alone confirm that it was serious. Chloe tries to stifle a giddy grin, but she can't help it. With a quiet squeal she leans over and pulls Aubrey in for a hug.

"Bree, this is big!" Chloe says excitedly. "I can't believe you didn't tell me sooner. Like, I thought there maybe was something there, but you never gave me enough to actually confirm." She pulls back and looks at Aubrey. "I'm really happy for you."

Aubrey smiles and gives Chloe a squeeze before looking back out toward her girlfriend. "Thanks Chloe. I wasn't sure I wanted to reveal it to everyone this week, but Stacie and I talked about it yesterday on the plane and we decided we want the Bellas to know."

Chloe nods, understanding where her friend is coming from. While she absolutely treasures her friendships with the other members of the Bellas, Chloe knows that almost nothing stays a secret among the group of women, and that there will likely be a lot of teasing headed Aubrey and Stacie's way as the others find out.

"Thanks for trusting me with your secret Aubrey." Chloe reaches over and gives Aubrey's hand a squeeze. "And you could do much worse for yourself. Stacie is a total babe and a doctor to boot."

A smile spreads across Aubrey's face and she leans back and relaxes into her chair once again. "Thanks Chloe. We're very happy together."

Chloe follows suit, lying back against the semi-reclined chair and crossing her feet at the ankles. A thought crosses her mind, and a wicked grin appears on her face. "I bet the hunter is happy too."

Aubrey sits up, spluttering at Chloe's comment. She blushes furiously and gives Chloe a light smack on her arm. "You shush, Chloe Mitchell!" She says in an angry whisper.

Chloe laughs at Aubrey's reaction, and winks at her blonde friend. Chloe's laughter dies down, and it is quiet for a few moments. Chloe certainly doesn't expect what comes out of Aubrey's mouth next.

"The sex is insane Chloe."

Chloe's head whips to her left where Aubrey has a smug grin on her face. Chloe stares slack-jawed at Aubrey for several seconds. When she finally composes herself, she can't help but laugh.

"Get it Bree." She says with a wink. "At least one of us is getting some…" Chloe claps a hand over her mouth when she realizes what she just admitted. "Oh god…I didn't mean to say that out loud."

Aubrey gives Chloe a sympathetic smile. "Chloe, you guys just had a baby. Give it some time."

Chloe considers Aubrey's point. While Aubrey is right, she doesn't want to say just how long it has been since her and Beca had been intimate. It took Chloe until a month or so ago to feel physically ready for sex after having Alex, but it had yet to happen with Beca working so much. Chloe almost gasps when she realizes that it has been over five months since the last time her and Beca had sex. Five. Whole. Months. Chloe begins to chew on her lip, feeling embarrassed at the lack of intimacy in her marriage. She had always considered her and Beca's relationship to be very healthy sexually, so actually contemplating their current dry spell was a lot for Chloe to take in. Chloe knows that Beca loves her, but not being able to be physically intimate with her wife had clearly taken more of an emotional toll on Chloe than she realized.

"It's been since before Alex was born, Aubrey." Chloe says quietly. "Probably close to five months."

Aubrey processes this information, and to her credit, doesn't make any outward indication that she is surprised by Chloe's statement.

"If you guys want a night to yourselves while you're here Chloe, all you have to do is ask. Stacie and I would be more than happy to watch Jack and Alex."

Chloe smiles at Aubrey's offer. While she definitely looked forward to reconnecting intimately with her wife, she didn't want to force it. "Thanks Aubrey. I'll think about it."

Aubrey waves her hand in dismissal. "Just let me know." Stacie and Bella make their way over to the cabana. Stacie picks up the towel beside Aubrey and hands it to Bella, before sitting down and giving Aubrey a kiss on the cheek. Chloe can't help but smile as one of Aubrey's hands makes its way to rest on Stacie's thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"Chloe, Bree says your newest addition is a heartbreaker." Stacie says, picking up another towel and wrapping it around herself.

Chloe grins. "Yes, he certainly is. He takes after his mother." She picks up her phone and swipes through her pictures until she finds one of Alex in Beca's arms. Chloe holds it out, so Aubrey and Stacie can see.

Stacie snatches the phone from Chloe and squeals at the adorable picture, before turning to Aubrey. "Come on! Is this not the cutest thing?" Aubrey smiles and nods her head, as Stacie hands the phone back to Chloe. "When I'm done with residency we're definitely getting on the baby train." She pulls Bella in to sit on her lap and kisses the girl's cheek several times. "I love you Bells, but you need a sibling or two."

Aubrey blushes briefly, but Chloe can see that Aubrey is excited at the prospect of eventually having children with her girlfriend. Aubrey shoots Chloe a smile, then leans in to kiss Stacie. When she pulls back, she gives Stacie a wink. "I think we can definitely revisit this conversation when you're done with your residency."

Chloe is thoroughly overjoyed watching the interactions between her two close friends, but she suddenly finds herself missing the company of her wife. Glancing at her phone, she sees that she's only been gone for a half hour. Chloe relaxes back into her chair, hoping that Beca and the boys will rejoin her soon, and returns into the conversation with two of her dearest friends.


	7. Chapter 7

Beca joins the trio not an hour later, bringing one very excited four-year-old, and one very cute baby with her. The four women had enjoyed catching up, while taking turns holding Alex or supervising Bella and Jack, who were loving the pool. After a couple hours at the pool, both couples separated to clean up a bit for dinner. They opted to meet up at the casual outdoor restaurant, wanting to enjoy the warm weather and the waning sunshine. A few more of the Bellas were scheduled to arrive at the resort in the next couple hours, so Stacie, Aubrey, Beca, and Chloe are holding down a few tables at the restaurant while they eat dinner.

Beca picks up her wine glass and takes a sip, enjoying the taste of the beverage as it slips down her throat. Putting down the glass, she reaches down with her other hand to ruffle a hand through Jack's hair. He looks up at her in response with a wide grin.

"How's your dinner Jack?"

He picks up one of his chicken tenders and takes a big bite. "Super good mom!" He takes another bite, then extends his hand, offering the food to Beca. "Try!"

Beca smiles and follows directions, taking a bite and then playfully pretending to eat the rest of the piece of chicken. Jack giggles and pulls his hand back, popping the rest of the food in his mouth to prevent Beca from eating it.

"Thanks for sharing Jack, you're right, that chicken is pretty great." Beca ruffles her son's hair once again. Picking up one of the forks on the table, she tries to nudge some of the veggies on his plate toward him, hoping that he will pick up on her suggestion and eat the vegetables too. Beca leans down and whispers gently. "Please make sure you eat some veggies dude."

Jack sighs but picks up a piece of broccoli with his fingers and puts it in his mouth. Beca rewards him by pressing a loud smacking kiss to his cheek, which makes Jack laugh.

Chloe watches the interaction from a few feet away where she is sitting next to Stacie, who is currently holding Alex so Chloe can eat in peace for a few moments. Chloe loves to be able to watch these sweet moments between Beca and Jack, and it's these types of moments that turn her to absolute mush. Chloe had loved Beca for a long time, but watching Beca being such a doting mom to her sons was something that Chloe would never get tired of, and it only amplified Chloe's love for Beca. Chloe knows that having Jack had changed her path in life, but it had changed Beca's as well.

 _Chloe brushed back a few wayward strands of hair as she bent down to open the oven. Satisfied that the lasagna was just about cooked to completion, she closed the door and stood up, groaning somewhat as she did so. Resting a hand on her hip, she takes a moment to wait for the muscles in her lower back to stop protesting. Looking down at the swell of her nearly eight-month pregnant belly, she moves her hand to rub across her belly, a smile appearing on her face as the baby kicks gently beneath her palm. Chloe's phone buzzes on the counter and she picks it up to see who is messaging her._

 _Chloe reads the text message, letting out a quiet "Shit!" under her breath. Beca had just landed at LAX and would be arriving home within the next half hour. Chloe's heart speeds up, realizing that she will be able to hug Beca in approximately thirty minutes. Beca's latest album had dropped shortly after Chloe had arrived in Los Angeles, meaning that media appearances and a tour had followed in quick succession. While Chloe was extremely proud of Beca and her accomplishments in the music industry, Chloe had been basically living in Beca's house for the past few months, with Beca spending only a few nights there in that time period. Chloe immensely appreciated Beca opening up her home with no questions asked, but Chloe desperately missed Beca's company. Both women texted and video chatted a lot while Beca was on the road, but Chloe physically needed to have Beca beside her. Between Beca's busy tour schedule and Chloe preparing for the baby to arrive in a few more weeks, Chloe had felt the strain the separation had caused. Knowing that Beca would be home for the next few months was very comforting, even though Chloe still wasn't quite sure where their relationship stood. But Beca was coming home tonight, and the baby was coming soon, and Chloe knew that she needed to say her peace sooner rather than later._

 _Chloe moves to turn off the oven, knowing that the remaining heat will keep the lasagna warm while Chloe finishes the rest of the dinner. She had wanted to make a bit of a homecoming dinner for Beca, knowing that Beca would desperately be missing a homecooked meal after being on tour for the past five months. Chloe looks at the rest of the fixings for dinner spread out over the kitchen island, and satisfied, nods to herself before moving to relax in one of the oversized chairs in the living room. Tucking her legs up beneath her, Chloe rests her head against the back of the chair and shuts her eyes for a few moments._

 _Chloe nods off for a bit and is awakened when she hears keys jingling in the lock of the door. She can't help the smile that quickly appears on her face, and she gingerly gets to her feet to go greet Beca._

 _Beca drops her messenger bag on the ground beside the door and peeks her head around the still-open door. "Chloe? Damn, it smells great in here!" Beca fully enters the room and props her suitcase against the wall. Looking around, she notices Chloe standing in the living room, and the sight almost takes Beca's breath away._

 _Beca has seen pictures of Chloe's growing baby bump over the past several months that she has been away, but nothing could have prepared her for seeing an eight-month pregnant Chloe with her own eyes. The redhead was breathtaking. Beca had always thought the pregnant lady "glowing" thing was total bullshit, but looking at Chloe in this moment, she finally understands. Chloe was glowing. And gorgeous. And it was making Beca feel…things. Things that she had felt for Chloe for a long time but had tried to ignore._

 _"Hey Beca." Chloe crosses the room to give Beca a much-needed hug. "How was your flight?" She stops a couple steps from Beca, noticing a look on Beca's face that she hasn't seen before. Noticing that Beca's gaze has dropped to her stomach, she rests her hand on her belly and chuckles._

 _"Oh…yeah. This is totes a thing now. I'm starting to feel like a beached whale." Chloe laughs at her own comment, looking up at Beca again._

 _Beca finally brings her eyes up to meet Chloe's gaze. The look in Beca's eyes is still one that Chloe can't quite read._

 _"You…look amazing Chloe. It suits you." Beca blushes somewhat, then closes the distance between the women to pull Chloe into her arms._

 _Chloe swears she hears Beca sigh as her arms come up to wrap around Beca's waist. It's kind of difficult to hug with her belly in the way, but Chloe doesn't care. Both women stay in the embrace for a few moments, with Chloe turning her head slightly to tuck into Beca's neck. She breathes in Beca's scent for a few breaths, realizing just how hard the separation had been on her._

 _"I'm really glad you're home Beca." Chloe whispers, pulling her face away to look at Beca. "I missed you." Without thinking, she leans in and kisses Beca's cheek, her lips lingering long enough so that the kiss is definitely more than a peck._

 _Beca pulls back, and with a genuine, but tired smile, returns the sentiment. "I missed you too Chlo." For some reason, she is drawn to the baby bump that is making contact with her stomach. Looking up nervously, she tentatively reaches toward it. "Do you…do you mind?"_

 _Chloe giggles at Beca's apprehension, shaking her head. "No, go ahead. Baby has been very active today so I'm sure you'll be able to feel a kick or two."_

 _Beca reaches out and rests her palms against Chloe's belly. "Wow…it feels different than I thought it would." Her hands slide gently so they're resting on either side of Chloe's belly. Chloe feels the baby kicking, and watches Beca's reaction._

 _"Oh shit dude!" Beca's eyes flick upward to meet Chloe's. "That's crazy." Her hands slide into a different position and Beca is rewarded with another strong kick, which makes her smile. "There's really a baby in there, huh?"_

 _Chloe laughs at Beca's reaction. She's been on the receiving end of the baby's kicks and movements for the better part of a few months now, so its old hat for her. But watching Beca experiencing it for the first time is maybe the cutest thing Chloe has ever seen._

 _"Yeah, there's definitely a baby in there." Taking one of Beca's hands, she leads Beca into the kitchen where there are a few sonograms as well as a 3-D ultrasound of the baby stuck to the fridge. "Here…I sent you pictures of the sonograms, but this ultrasound picture is from last week." She pulls the glossy picture off the fridge and hands it to Beca._

 _Beca isn't quite sure what to think when she looks at the picture. It's somewhat grainy, but she can clearly make out the baby that is currently growing inside Chloe. Even though Beca has no attachment to the baby, she can't help but feel emotional as she studies the picture. The baby's face is easily visible, and is sucking its thumb, which Beca can't help but smile at. Beca is drawn to how much the baby looks like Chloe, which is something that she hadn't even considered would be a possibility, even though the baby was half Chloe. Beca runs one finger down the picture, seemingly tracing the baby's cheek line._

 _"It uh, it looks like you." Beca passes the picture back to Chloe then reaches up to rub her neck for a moment. "Its…cute."_

 _"You think?" Chloe narrows her gaze at the picture for a few seconds before placing it back on the fridge. "I guess we'll just have to wait until its born to know for sure." She gives an easy smile to Beca and motions for Beca to grab a plate. "Come on, let's eat. I know you've had a long day and I know that Beca Mitchell can't resist my lasagna."_

 _Beca moans at the mention of lasagna and picks up a plate. "Thanks for cooking Chlo. You're the best."_

 _Chloe pulls the lasagna from the oven and puts it on the counter. "Anytime." She reaches for Beca's plate and serves up the food. Once she has done so, Chloe portions out some for herself and joins Beca at the table. It is quiet as Beca begins shoveling food into her mouth, acting as though she hadn't eaten for several days._

 _"Oh my god Chlo. This is phenomenal." Beca says around a mouthful of food. She swallows and pauses for a minute, looking across the table at Chloe. "Thanks…again. You're fucking eight months pregnant and you made me a gourmet dinner. That's wife material Beale." She says with a grin, before taking another large bite._

 _Chloe blushes, but brushes Beca off with a shrug of her shoulders. "Its fine Beca, really. I'm just glad you're home."_

 _"Me too Chloe."_

 _Both women finish their meal, but neither get up to leave the table immediately. Chloe watches Beca, knowing that there is something on her mind. Beca takes a sip of her water, then puts her glass down._

 _"Okay Chloe, I just want to say something." Beca's hands nervously fidget with the corner of her napkin. "I'm not really good with these types of things but, I just need to get this out."_

 _Chloe raises her eyebrows somewhat, but nods. "Yeah, okay."_

 _Beca pauses to take a breath, and looks up at Chloe. "I'm sorry."_

 _Chloe's brow furrows in confusion. "For what Beca?"_

 _"For…for leaving on tour so quickly after you came out here. I didn't plan on all this happening with the new album, and then the tour. I just…I feel like I abandoned you. You had just gotten here. You were here in a new city and I just left. And like, I didn't want to, but its my job, you know? And I just left you here in this big house, like, growing a human, while I went from city to city." Beca pauses, looking up at Chloe before dropping her gaze back down to the table. "You're the most important person in my life Chlo. When we lost touch last year, it was brutal. I didn't know how to function without you. I had just gotten used to the idea of having you in my life again, and then I was gone. I had a lot of time to think about shit when I was on tour, and I guess what I'm trying to say is…you, you matter to me Chloe. And I want to be there to help out with the baby. I feel shitty for having missed so much. I should have been helping you like decorate a room and build a crib, I dunno, baby shit right?"_

 _Beca stops rambling for a minute, but looking up at Chloe's eyes was a mistake. Chloe's eyes are shimmering with tears, but she is smiling at Beca. Over the years, Beca and Chloe just sort of existed in their relationship, never defining or directly acknowledging just what the other meant to them. Beca had just in her own awkward but endearing way confirmed what Chloe already felt for the other woman._

 _"Stop rambling you dork." Chloe reaches across the table to where Beca's hand is still nervously fidgeting with her napkin. She takes Beca's hand in hers and gives it a gentle squeeze. "I don't think I can ever repay you for letting me crash here, no questions asked. It has been hard, I won't lie, but I'm so proud of you and where your career has taken you." Chloe squeezes again for emphasis. "So proud Beca. I knew you would do great things from the first time I met you at Barden. I missed you when you were on tour. I wanted to text you all the time just to tell you random things about my day. Or have you come to some of my doctor's appointments. I missed you Becs. But let's not dwell on it, okay?" Chloe reaches up and wipes a couple tears from her eyes. "I'm just really glad you're home Beca."_

 _Beca chews on her lip for a few seconds. "Me too Chloe." She looks over her shoulder to where her bag is leaning against the wall. "I have something for you."_

 _Chloe releases her hand and watches as Beca goes over to rummage through her bag briefly. She pulls out a small gift bag and makes her way back to the table, placing it in front of Chloe. "Its just a little something." Beca says with a shrug. "Open it."_

 _Chloe does as she is instructed, reaching into the bag and pulling out a small bundle that is wrapped in tissue paper. She gently unfolds the package and pulls out a tiny baby onesie. Unfolding it, she quickly recognizes a Barden University seal on the front of the garment, which immediately makes Chloe teary. She runs her fingers along the soft fabric, marveling at how she will soon have a baby that will fit into this tiny outfit. She looks up at Beca, who is watching her intently._

 _"The tour bus rolled past Barden a few weeks ago and I made them stop. I couldn't help it." Beca grins. "If you tell anyone I said this, I'll totally deny it, but I took one look at that onesie and thought it was the cutest thing ever." Beca's smile fades, and she pulls the chair out to sit next to Chloe. "I just wanted you to know that I'm in this with you. Whatever you need, whatever the baby needs, I'm there." Beca pauses. "And I've arranged a deal with the label about my next album. I told them I'm taking a break to write more songs, so I'm not headed back into the studio for at least six months. So, no touring for at least a year."_

 _Chloe processes this information, knowing that the record label likely wouldn't have been happy with Beca's arrangement. She quickly wipes away a tear that is threatening to fall. "Beca, you can't set aside your career just because I got myself pregnant. I would never ask that of you."_

 _Beca shrugs and wraps an arm around Chloe. "I'm not setting aside my career Chlo. I just want to take some time away to be there for you. Shit is gonna change a lot in the next month. There's going to be a baby here in a few weeks. Let me help you."_

 _Chloe sighs, wondering just what she has done to deserve Beca in her life. Sniffling a bit, she brushes the rest of her tears away and looks up at Beca. "Okay." She allows Beca to pull her closer, resting her head on her shoulder. "Any chance you know how to put together Ikea furniture? The crib is still in a box waiting to be put together."_

 _Beca laughs. "Yeah Chlo. I think I can manage that." She gives Chloe's shoulder a squeeze. "But maybe tomorrow, because right now all I want to do is collapse into my bed." She presses a kiss to Chloe's temple._

 _"Tomorrow then." Chloe replies with a grin._

"Aww yeah! It's the big BM!"

Chloe smiles, hearing the distinctly Australian accent from across the room. She is pulled back into the present and glances over her shoulder where Amy, Jessica, and Ashley are making their way through the restaurant towards them. She laughs as she watches Beca throw her napkin onto the table excitedly and get up and greet the three Bellas in a group hug. Chloe reaches to take Alex from Stacie who is currently squealing, clearly wanting to join in the hug. Aubrey is hot on her heels, and both women envelop the already hugging group, who have started a small ruckus in the restaurant.

"Mama?" Chloe looks over to Jack who is watching the interaction take place. "Who are those people?"

Shifting Alex a bit in her arms, she laughs as Amy has now picked up Beca and is spinning her around.

"Those are the Bellas baby. They are mama and mom's best friends. Remember when we showed you that video of us singing?"

Jack nods. "You and mom danced too."

"Yes, we did." She rests her hand on Jack's back, as he seems somewhat overwhelmed by the joyful reunion taking place. "They're very excited to meet you Jack."

As if on cue, Amy has placed Beca back on solid ground, and the two women walk over toward the table. Chloe smiles widely as Amy pulls her in for a big hug, although she is careful of the baby in Chloe's arms. Chloe and Beca have missed Amy the past few years. Living with her in New York had been interesting to say the least, but both had formed close friendships with the Aussie.

"Amy, its so good to see you!"

"Yeah, you too Chloe." Amy looks at the baby in her arms. "I see Beca finally knocked you up." She turns to wink at Beca who runs her hand across her face in embarrassment.

"Not in front of the kids Amy." Beca says, although she is clearly trying to stifle her laughter.

Amy looks at the two boys, then shrugs. She reaches out and takes the baby from Chloe's arms. Beca reaches out, as if she is terrified that Amy will drop the baby. Amy rolls her eyes and bounces slightly with the baby in her arms, and both women are surprised to see Alex smiling contentedly in Amy's arms.

"Relax, Beca. Babies love me." Amy looks between both women. "Seriously, I've got this. I'm going to transfer some of my awesome confidence to him."

Beca and Chloe laugh, and then Beca remembers exactly how Amy had transferred "confidence" to her several years ago.

"Wait, Amy…no butt confidence. No butt confidence!"

Chloe laughs as Beca tries to take their son away from Amy, patting her wife sympathetically on the shoulder as she moves to greet Jessica and Ashley.


	8. Chapter 8

Beca wakes up the next morning disoriented at the unfamiliar surroundings. The curtains on the window have blocked out the majority of the light and Beca can't discern what time it is. Rubbing her eyes with one hand, she glances to her left where Chloe is curled up, tangled in the sheets she has stolen from Beca over the course of the night. Yawning, Beca closes her eyes and rests for a few minutes. The rest of last night had been fun, with the handful of Bellas that had arrived sharing a few drinks and a lot of laughs. Chloe and Beca had called it a night early, with the excuse that they had two small children to put to bed, but in truth the jet lag had hit both women pretty hard, and they were ready for bed themselves. While Jack had fallen right asleep, Alex had difficulty adjusting to sleeping in a hotel room, so Chloe and Beca were up periodically with the baby over the course of the night trying to soothe him back to sleep.

Beca looks back to where Chloe is sleeping. She doesn't want to wake her wife, but Beca scoots gingerly to her left, wanting to be the big spoon for a bit before the kids wake up. Sweeping some of Chloe's hair away from her neck, Beca leans over and kisses her wife a few times before adjusting the pillow underneath her head so she can lay behind Chloe. Getting comfortable, Beca pulls the soft blankets over the two of them, then wraps her arm around Chloe's waist, allowing her hand to slide up under Chloe's t-shirt so that its resting low along Chloe's belly. With a smile, Beca closes her eyes, content to be close to her love for the time being.

The feeling of Beca's cool hand on Chloe's warm skin causes Chloe to stir. Wrinkling her nose at the feeling, she sleepily looks over her shoulder to see Beca resting behind her. Chloe lifts one hand to where Beca's is resting on her stomach and links their fingers together, and scoots back slightly so their bodies are molded together. Sighing contentedly, she closes her eyes again.

"Morning babe." Chloe whispers quietly.

Beca nuzzles closer, leaning her forehead against the back of Chloe's shoulder. "Morning." She grunts in return. "Stupid time difference. My body just woke up."

Chloe opens her eyes to peer at the clock on the nightstand. "Well, its 8:12am. That's 11:12am according to our bodies."

Beca groans, and Chloe can't help but laugh. Beca would never be a morning person. Shushing her wife's protests so they won't wake up Alex who is still sleeping in his crib several feet away, Chloe pulls Beca's arm from around her waist and turns over so that she is facing her wife. Beca's eyes are screwed shut tightly, not wanting to commit to being fully awake. Smiling, Chloe leans in and peppers Beca's face with kisses, feeling Beca's frown disappearing into a smile as she does so. Beca's eyes finally open, and Chloe feels her smile grow wider as Beca's deep blue eyes peer sleepily back at her. Leaning in, Chloe closes the distance and places a sweet kiss on Beca's lips. Beca smiles into the kiss, and reciprocates, reaching her arm across to rest on Chloe's lower back and pull her closer. Humming contentedly, Chloe tangles her hand in Beca's dark hair and deepens the kiss. Beca's hand slips under Chloe's shirt again, and Chloe shivers when she feels Beca's nails scraping gently across the smooth skin on her back. Pulling back for a minute, Chloe opens her eyes to see Beca looking at her with a distinct look of desire on her face. With a teasing wink, her wife's hand travels lower, slipping beneath the waistband of Chloe's underwear to grab at the soft curve of Chloe's ass. Chloe can't help as a quiet moan slips out of her mouth, and leans forward to reconnect their lips again, this time with a renewed hunger. It had been too long since Chloe and Beca had time to spend just physically enjoying one another, and although in the back of Chloe's mind she knew this wasn't going to go any further than a steamy makeout session (due to the two small children in close proximity), she lets herself enjoy the moment.

Beca's hand squeezes Chloe's ass a few times as the two women continue to kiss, before Chloe reaches back and stills the movements by grabbing Beca's hand. Chloe laughs as Beca whines, pulling her hand back with a pout. Noting the flushed look on Beca's face, Chloe leans across and tries to gently kiss the pout from Beca's face. After a few kisses, she pulls back and rolls onto her back. Beca does the same, with a quiet grunt, but after a few seconds, reaches to pull Chloe's hand into hers. It is quiet while both women attempt to quell the arousal that had quickly made its way to the surface.

"Well, that wasn't the worst way to wake up." Beca turns her head to the left to see Chloe grinning, with a telltale flush spread across her face and chest. "You still have the ass of a twenty-two year old."

Chloe giggles and rolls back onto her side, scooting close so she can rest her head on Beca's chest. "Beca Mitchell. Forever the romantic." Rolling her eyes, she feels Beca laugh beneath her before Beca's arm wraps around her waist once again. "Seriously though, that was a nice way to wake up."

"Mhmm." Beca replies, placing a kiss to the top of Chloe's tousled auburn hair. "I'm not opposed to waking up like that every morning." Her fingertips trail up and down Chloe's arm, leaving goosebumps in their wake.

"Duly noted."

It is quiet for a few moments, and both women relax into each other, enjoying the closeness they have been missing as of late. Beca feels Chloe sigh contentedly, her warm breath ghosting across the skin exposed by her tank top. Both women hear a quiet noise from the room adjoining theirs where their son had been sleeping on the sofa bed, then they hear Jack call out.

"In here dude." Beca calls in reply, knowing that her response will likely wake up Alex as well. "Come snuggle with me and mama."

"Mommy?" Jack appears in the doorway to their room, rubbing sleepily at his eyes. Beca and Chloe both smile at the sleepy boy, and Chloe sits up and motions for him to come over. Her phone buzzes on the nightstand and she picks it up and tosses it to Beca before leaning over to pick Jack up underneath his armpits and depositing him gently on the bed. Smiling at the way Jack immediately leans into Beca and cuddles into her side, Chloe leans down and kisses the small boy's cheek before standing to go check on Alex who is starting to stir in his crib.

"How's my Jackson this morning?" Beca questions the still sleepy child. "Did you sleep okay? I know that's a bigger bed then you're used to at home buddy." She watches as Chloe gently picks up Alex from the crib, pressing kisses to both his cheeks before exiting the room to go change the baby's diaper.

Jack nods and yawns into Beca's side. "I sleeped good mommy." He nuzzles his face into her neck.

Beca secretly loves that Jack calls her mommy when he's especially sleepy. He was growing up so quickly, turning into a little man instead of a toddler. These quiet moments sharing snuggles were some of her favorite. A smile spreads across her face as the quiet sounds of Chloe singing to Alex as she changes his diaper trickle in from the other room. The phone in her lap buzzes again, and Beca picks it up and punches in Chloe's lock password to pull up the text message. It is from Aubrey, and Beca tries to stifle her groan as she reads over the detailed message laying out the activities for the day. Aubrey was nothing, if not extremely prepared, something which Beca still couldn't quite appreciate. Scrolling down, Beca finished reading the lengthy text, but lets out a sigh of relief when she realizes the primary activity for the day would be the beach. Cynthia-Rose and Lilly had apparently arrived late last night, and Emily and Flo would be arriving later this afternoon.

"Was that Aubrey?" Chloe reappears in the room, carrying a freshly diapered Alex. "What activities does she have up her sleeve today?" She settles against the headboard, adjusting her shirt to give Alex his first feeding of the day.

"Breakfast buffet starts at 9:30. And then I guess we're chilling at the beach for the rest of the day. Flo and Emily get in this afternoon. Then dinner later with everyone." Beca replies, placing the phone back on the table beside her. Beca reaches out and traces her finger along the bottom of Alex's foot, grinning as the baby's toes wiggle in response. "How's the beach sound Mr. Jack?"

"Yay!" Jack sits up and bounces excitedly on the bed, causing both women to laugh at his antics.

"I think he's excited Chlo." Beca says with another laugh. Picking up the excited kid, she puts him down on the floor. "Go pick out a bathing suit bud."

Jack is off and running to his room to rifle through his suitcase. Beca watches him go, then pulls the covers aside and slides out of bed. "You good if I go take a quick shower babe?"

Chloe nods, but taps her lip a few times with a grin. Beca smiles and walks around the bed to place a quick kiss on Chloe's lips. After she has done so, she bends down and kisses Alex on the head. "I'll just be a few and then I'll take Alex so you can freshen up too."

"Sounds good." Chloe watches Beca gather her things and head toward the bathroom. "Enjoy your shower!"

"Thanks babe." Beca calls over her shoulder, shutting the door to the bathroom.

* * *

After an especially filling breakfast where Chloe and Beca enjoyed reconnecting with Cynthia-Rose and Lilly, the group of Bellas gathered up their beach gear and headed out to enjoy the private stretch of beach that the resort owned. Aubrey had reserved several beach chairs and umbrellas for the duration of the stay, so the group spread out and got comfortable. Beca and Chloe had set up next to Aubrey and Stacie on one side, and Cynthia-Rose and her fiancé Laurie on the other. The two women spent a few moments catching up with Cynthia-Rose, who had been in the Air Force for the past few years, eventually ending up stationed in Florida as a pilot. Beca and Chloe had enjoyed meeting her fiancé Laurie and were excited that their old friend had found love as well as success in her career.

Looking around, Beca grumbled at the sheer amount of stuff they had needed for their two small children for the immediate future. Digging through one of the canvas tote bags, Beca locates the tube of sunscreen and straightens up.

"Jack! Get your cute butt over here." Beca calls over to where Jack is sitting in the sand, already attempting to make a sand castle with Bella and Aubrey. She turns to Chloe who has laid out a large blanket under one of the umbrellas and is sitting cross-legged with Alex on her lap. "He hates sunscreen Chlo. Why do I have to be the bad guy?"

Chloe calls Jack again, who follows instructions this time, and with a pout that reminds Beca so much of Chloe, he trudges through the sand over to where his moms are.

"Turn around dude. Time for sunscreen." Beca squeezes a large amount of the lotion onto her hand and starts to rub it onto her squirmy son's back. "Hold still Jack!"

Chloe tries not to laugh as she watches Beca struggle to liberally coat Jack's skin with the sunscreen. She knew from firsthand experience that trying to put sunscreen on the kid was like trying to wrestle an alligator. Jack was a very well-behaved kid for the most part, but when it came to sunscreen he wanted no part in it. But he was fair-skinned, so it was a necessary evil. Chloe almost feels bad about making her wife deal with his antics, but she knows that Beca doesn't really mind. Leaning down, Chloe adjusts the brim of Alex's hat, kissing his chubby cheek in the process. When she straightens up, she sees that Beca has almost finished, finally managing to get their son to stay still as she rubs the lotion onto Jack's face.

"Okay dude, go play." Beca gives Jack a pat on his butt and sends him off to play with Bella and Aubrey again. "Don't go in the water unless me or mama are with you!"

Jack turns his head and nods as he runs the several feet to where the sand castle is beginning to take shape. He plops down in the sand and resumes digging in the sand with his new friends.

Beca plops down on the blanket beside Chloe and Alex. She pulls off her t-shirt and picks up Alex from Chloe's lap. Settling him on her lap, she hands the sunscreen to Chloe. "Get my back?" She glances over her shoulder with a smirk. "It's only fair Chlo. You owe me after I took one for the team trying to wrangle your son."

" _Our_ son Beca." Chloe rolls her eyes but picks up the tube and squeezes some of the lotion directly onto Beca's back, intentionally making Beca jump a little at the cool feeling.

"Jesus Chlo! A little warning next time."

Chloe giggles, and leans forward to kiss the back of Beca's shoulder as an apology. She begins to rub the lotion into Beca's skin, enjoying how Beca squirms as she runs her hands along Beca's ribs teasingly. Slipping her hands underneath the string of Beca's bikini she grins as Beca's face turns red. Chloe finishes up, giving Beca's shoulders a little pat when she's done.

"You two being all domestic and shit…" Cynthia-Rose laughs as she walks by their blanket. She stops and turns to them, pulling off her Air Force t-shirt and tossing it on a nearby chair. She gives both women a wink as her fiancé joins her and they start off down toward the water. "Looks good on you Mitchell." She calls over her shoulder.

Chloe and Beca just laugh in response, knowing they would likely take a lot of teasing from their friends. When they got together, no one was really surprised. But that still didn't stop them from teasing the family, especially loving to tease Beca for her newfound "mommy" ways.

Standing up, Chloe pulls off her white cover-up, revealing a navy blue bikini that hugs her in all the right places. Chloe smirks, knowing that Beca is definitely giving her a once-over beneath the dark Ray-Bans on her face. "Close your mouth babe." She teases, holding out her hand in invitation. "You're drooling."

Beca stands with Alex still in her arms. "You're killing me Chlo." She groans. "You look amazing."

Chloe does a bit of a twirl, showing off her bikini to her admiring wife. She flushes a bit, still feeling a little self-conscious of her body, even though she knows she's lost nearly all her baby weight. But she is reassured by the look on Beca's face, knowing that her wife especially loves how her breasts fill out the cups of the bikini top, a result of her recent pregnancy and breastfeeding. She reaches out and links her fingers with Beca's and they walk down toward the edge of the water, with Beca carrying Alex in her other arm.

Beca squats down once they reach the edge of the water, where the waves are breaking gently across the sand. Holding Alex carefully, she holds the baby so his feet dip into the water. Chloe squats down beside her, a smile appearing on her face as she watches their son experiencing the ocean for the first time.

"I think he likes it Beca."

Beca sits down in the sand and cranes her neck so she can watch the expression on Alex's face as she dips his baby toes in the water again. Alex flails his arms excitedly, and both women laugh as the baby coos happily.

"Hold on, let me grab my phone. I need a video of this." Chloe jogs back across to where their belongings are located and returns a few seconds later with her phone. Squatting down again, she holds the phone up and pulls up the video app. Beca fixes the tiny rash guard that has risen up on Alex's tummy, then looks up at her wife.

"You ready?"

Chloe nods, and starts the video as Beca dips their little guy in the water again, this time a bit deeper. Chloe smiles at the baby's reaction, trying to keep the camera steady as she giggles. Alex manages to get his hands to the water, slapping at it sporadically and splashing himself. Chloe keeps the video running for a few more seconds, then shuts it off, saving it to her phone.

"Well he likes the beach a lot more than I did when I was a kid." Beca muses, bouncing the baby in her arms gently. "I think this one's gonna be a water baby."

Chloe laughs and sits down in the sand beside Beca. "Why am I not surprised you didn't like the beach as a kid? God forbid Beca Mitchell likes anything remotely fun."

Beca scoffs and rolls her eyes. "Chloe, I'm tiny and pale. The beach is sunny, the water is deep, and sand gets _everywhere_."

Chloe laughs again, enjoying the feel of the warm sun across her face and the feel of Beca's skin against hers as they sit close to one another. She nudges Beca's side with her elbow. "Oh, come on, it's not so bad." She reaches her hand down and cups some water in her hand, dripping it along Beca's thigh.

Beca scowls, but the scowl quickly gives way to a smile as Alex giggles at the wave that has come up the sand to splash them gently. She looks over her shoulder to where Jack is still playing with Bella and Aubrey, and now Stacie has joined them. Turning back with a happy smile on her face, she leans her head on Chloe's shoulder.

"I guess the beach isn't so bad."

Chloe grins and kisses the top of her wife's head. Beca smells like coconut shampoo and sunscreen. She is immensely grateful for this time away with her family and her closest friends.

"Take a picture with me?" Chloe holds her phone up, switching the camera so that they can take a selfie. "Baby's first beach day."

Beca can't deny her wife when she's being so adorable, and actually refrains from rolling her eyes. Holding up Alex so he's better in the frame she smiles for the camera, deciding at the last minute to turn her head to press a kiss to Chloe's cheek. Chloe snaps the picture and both women settle into a comfortable and relaxed silence as they watch Alex squirming in the water. A few minutes later, Jack comes over to join them, asking Beca to go in the water with him. Handing the baby to Chloe, she obliges, holding tightly onto his hand as they wade into the warm water. They don't go in very deep, but Jack and Beca have a blast, jumping over the waves and chasing each other around. Chloe holds Alex and watches their antics with a big smile on her face. After a while, Aubrey and the other Bellas come to join her and they spend the rest of the afternoon in easy banter.


	9. Chapter 9

**There's a sex scene at the end of this chapter, so if that's not your thing then feel free to skip. Thanks for reading!**

* * *

Beca somehow manages to only get a little bit of a sunburn between the late morning and early afternoon and is thankful for the excuse to spend some time indoors mid-afternoon, under the guise that she had to take Alex in for a nap. The baby had fallen asleep in Chloe's arms and was soundly asleep as they sat under their beach umbrella, but they both decided it would be good for him to get out of the heat for a while and get a solid nap in before they had to make an appearance at dinner later. Beca gently scooped her son out of her wife's arms and had headed up to their room for a brief reprieve while Chloe and Jack went back to the pool for a little bit. Alex was still fast asleep as she entered their suite, closing the door gently behind her as to not wake the baby.

Beca settles gingerly on the bed, slowly reclining back so Alex is resting on her chest, one of his tiny fists curling up under his chin. Chloe had eventually just left the baby clad only in a diaper after his most recent diaper change, and his body was warm against Beca's bare chest, as she was still in her bikini top with a pair of jean shorts. Beca watches her son sleeping against her, his eyelashes fluttering every once and a while as he dreams whatever babies dream about. Having him against her, skin to skin, reminds her of how she first held Jack like this when he was born.

 _Things had happened so quickly that Beca was at a complete loss for words. One second Chloe was clutching her hand in a death grip and making noises of agony that no human should ever make, and the next second there was a tiny, screaming, wiggling baby propped on Chloe's chest being wiped down by a nurse. Beca briefly registered Chloe's half-laugh half-cry of relief as she got her first look at her son._

 _Chloe's son. It was a boy._

 _This thought passed through Beca's mind, and she attempted to release her hand from Chloe's, wanting to give her some space to meet her son, surprised when Chloe only clutched her hand harder._

 _"No Beca. Stay." Chloe looked up at Beca, her blue eyes full of tears and her sweaty and flushed cheeks marked with tear tracks. Her free hand raised shakily from where she had been clutching the rail of the hospital bed and moved to rest on the baby's back. Chloe released another sob, looking back down at the tiny creature on her chest. Beca watched as Chloe closed her eyes, letting her head fall back against the pillow. "Holy shit Beca. He's here."_

 _Beca gives Chloe's hand a squeeze and leans a little closer, still not quite sure about how to feel about what was happening. She leans in so that she can rest her forehead against Chloe's sweaty one, pushing back some of the drenched strands with her fingers. "You did so good Chlo." She allows herself to finally look at the baby on Chloe's chest, surprised when her heart clenches as she does so. Her breath hitches for a second. He is absolutely perfect. Yes, he's kind of squishy-looking like all new babies are, he is still covered in that gross slimy shit, but Beca knows that he is a beautiful baby. He's Chloe's. How could he not be? Beca continues to study the baby, his screams now calmed to tiny whimpers, his heart-shaped lips trembling in the cutest way as he adjusts to being in the world. He has the tiniest hands she has ever seen, and she has the urge to reach out and run her finger along his hand that is clutching the neck of Chloe's hospital gown. His nose is a mirror image of Chloe's. She turns back to Chloe, finding that Chloe has been watching her studying the baby. Shit. How long had she been staring?_

 _Chloe gives Beca a watery smile, and Beca doesn't think Chloe has ever looked more beautiful than in this moment. Beca's heart clenches again, and she can't seem to pull her eyes away from Chloe's._

 _"Congratulations mommy!" The obstetrician congratulates Chloe, forcing the two women to break eye contact. "We need to cut the cord, weigh the little man, and clean him up, and then he's all yours again."_

 _Chloe cranes her neck and gives him a few kisses on the crown of his head, then nods as she wipes away some of the tears from her face. A nurse scoops the baby from his perch on Chloe's chest and Chloe's head falls back against the bed again, her exhaustion evident as she does so. Her eyes close, and Beca isn't quite sure what to do with herself._

 _"Does your uh, friend, want to cut the cord?" The doctor asks. Beca looks around the room for a few seconds until she realizes that the doctor is referring to her, holding out a pair of surgical scissors in her direction._

 _"Wait, what? Me? Uhhh, I don't think that's…like…those are really sharp. What if I cut him by accident?" Beca stammers, looking down at Chloe in a panic._

 _Chloe just laughs and nods toward the end of the bed where the doctor is waiting. "Go ahead Becs, cut the cord. Someone has to. You'll be fine."_

 _Beca just opens and closes her mouth, and somehow her feet take her down to the end of the bed where she takes the offered scissors, her hand shaking slightly as she does._

 _"Just cut right there, between those two clamps." The doctor urges gently. Beca follows directions, and is surprised when she has completed the task with neither her or the baby being traumatized by the experience. Once the task is completed, the nurses whisk the baby away to the warming isolette that has been on standby next to the window in the delivery room. She cranes her neck to try and get a look at what they are doing, feeling a strange pull to be with the baby at all times, but gives up, wanting to be with Chloe again as they wait for the medical staff to finish running their tests and cleaning the baby up. She pulls the chair closer to the bed and sits down, leaning toward Chloe and lacing their fingers together again._

 _"You okay?"_

 _Chloe's head lolls to the side, her eyes still slightly teary as she nods in response. "Just tired." She smiles as Beca's thumb starts to slowly slide back and forth gently along her skin. "I miss him already. He's only like fifteen feet away and I miss him."_

 _Beca can't help but smile. "They're almost done Chlo." She watches as Chloe grimaces as the doctor pushes on her abdomen. She attempts to take Chloe's mind off things for a few more moments. "Do you…uhh, do you have a name picked out?"_

 _Chloe smiles, her face lighting up once again as she nods. "I do." She pauses, knowing that the silence will make Beca crazy. Patience was never really Beca's strong suit._

 _Sure enough, Beca rolls her eyes. "And?" She narrows her eyes and the look is enough to make Chloe laugh again._

 _"Jackson. Jack for short."_

 _Beca mulls this information over in her mind, testing out the name several times. Jackson Beale. Jack._

 _"That's a solid name Chlo." Beca gives Chloe's hand a squeeze as she grins at the redhead. "Jackson Beale. Dude…you have a kid. This is crazy."_

 _"I know." Chloe replies, her eyes getting misty once again. "He's really here. I just…I can't believe he's here."_

 _There's movement across the room, and the nurse is suddenly bringing a tiny bundle with a blue hat towards them. "Okay mommy, here's your beautiful baby boy. He passed all his tests with flying colors. Born at 8:34pm, weighing eight pounds, three ounces, and he is twenty-one inches long. He's gonna be a heartbreaker. Congratulations." She unwraps the blanket from around the baby, preparing to hand him to Chloe. "I know your birth plan specified you wanted to do some skin-to-skin right after birth. Now is as good a time as any."_

 _The doctor pipes up from the end of the bed. "It looks like Chloe is about to deliver the placenta. And there's a bit of a tear here that repairing isn't going to be very pleasant. You might want to hold off on the skin-to-skin for a few moments."_

 _Chloe sighs, dropping her head back against the pillow in frustration. Her body aches to hold her son. Turning to Beca, she decides she has a plan for the time being._

 _"Beca will do it. Give him to Beca. He needs to bond with someone, and if it can't be me, then it needs to be Beca for a few minutes." She quiets her voice, looking up to meet Beca's blue eyes, which are suddenly looking a bit panicked. "Beca, just hold him. Unbutton your shirt and hold him against your chest."_

 _Beca's mouth opens and closes, trying to come up with some reason, any reason, that this job shouldn't fall to her. She's not the baby's mom, she's just mom's best friend that has lots of unrequited romantic feelings. But looking at Chloe she knows how important this is, so instead of coming up with some snarky response, she just starts unbuttoning her flannel shirt, blushing slightly as she does so. No sooner is her shirt unbuttoned then suddenly there is a tiny little creature resting against her skin. Beca raises her hands reflexively, one cradling the little boy's bum and the other resting on the top of his back. She isn't quite sure what to do for several seconds, and it isn't until she hears Chloe gently whispering for her to relax that she leans back against the chair and takes in the moment. The nurse smiles as Beca gets comfortable, nodding encouragingly as she drapes the baby blanket across Beca and the baby to try and preserve some of Beca's modesty._

 _Chloe is glad for the distraction watching Beca hold Jack for the first time, as whatever the doctor is doing between her legs is definitely less than pleasant. She watches as several emotions pass across her best friend's face. Chloe is immensely thankful for Beca. She knows that Beca is just as terrified as she is about having a baby, but she also knows that Beca will give her and the baby the world if she asked for it. There's something about Beca with a baby that makes Chloe's heart melt, and she knows she is going to start crying again. She watches as Beca's face finally softens and relaxes, and she leans forward to tentatively press a kiss to Jack's head. The tears are falling again, and Chloe could not care less. She is content that her son is safely in the arms of the woman she loves. She sniffles, brushing away a few of the tears that have started to fall. She makes a promise in that moment to tell Beca how she feels. Not today. But, soon._

 _Beca can hear Chloe crying next to her and knows that Chloe is clearly overwhelmed with the emotions that have happened over the past twelve hours. She adjusts herself in the chair, scooting over gently so that she is as close to Chloe as possible, then, making sure she is safely cradling the baby with one hand, she reaches over and grabs Chloe's hand with her free one. She brings Chloe's hand up to her mouth, gently kissing the back of it, before guiding it to rest on Jack's back. Chloe shoots Beca a watery smile, finally relaxing as she is able to touch her son once again. The two women focus their attention on the tiny baby on Beca's chest, both content to get to know the little guy that will change their lives in ways they never thought possible._

Beca realizes she is on the verge of crying when she thinks about that day. Looking down at her son on her chest, she tries to hold back a sob, not wanting to wake Alex. Being a mom was truly the best thing Beca had ever done, and she would do absolutely anything to make sure that Chloe and her kids were happy and healthy. Lately, with her work schedule, she knew that she wasn't home nearly enough, and she hoped that she could talk to Charlie about that when she got back from Hawaii. She owed that to Chloe, who put so much into caring for their family day after day.

Exhaling a shaky breath, and hastily wiping her eyes, Beca moves to put Alex down on the bed beside her. She loved to snuggle with him, but she figured she would make use of the quiet time to check her work emails for a bit. Making sure he is settled on the bed, she gets up to grab a thin blanket from his crib to cover him, given he's only in a diaper.

"Damn. We do make beautiful babies." Beca muses, a smile playing across her face as Alex raises his arms over his head as he sleeps. She watches him sleep for a few seconds, then turns to grab her iPad from the table next to the bed, logging on and pulling up her emails. She flicks through them, most of them are fine to wait to deal with until she returns from Hawaii, but one from Charlie stands out. She taps it, her eyes scanning the screen as she reads it. Her eyes widen when she realizes what she is reading.

"Shit." Her eyes screw shut and she puts the iPad down beside her. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she takes a deep breath and picks the iPad back up, scrolling through the email again to make sure she hadn't misread anything. Her heart beats faster when she realizes that what she thought she was reading was in fact, true. "Fuck!"

The label wanted her to go on tour again. Something about releasing a compilation album of her top singles and wanting her to go on tour to promote it. Honestly, Beca stopped reading all the details when she realized just what Charlie was asking of her. She frantically taps out a response to Charlie, wanting him to send her a copy of her contract ASAP, wanting to know if there was any way she could opt out of this. She knew Charlie had her back, so if he had felt the need to give her a heads up about a potential tour, she understood that there likely wasn't much choice in the matter. When she had finished the email, she dropped the iPad back on the table next to her, not bothering to log out of the email app. Rolling over, she pulls a pillow over her head, releasing a frustrated groan into it.

Beca hears the door to the other room opening, signaling the return of Chloe and Jack. Beca exhales, pulling the pillow from her head. She knows she is going to have to tell Chloe about this new development, but honestly the idea of doing that makes her want to throw up. She hears Chloe come into the room, and a few seconds later she feels Chloe hand on her back, leaning down to kiss Beca's cheek.

Beca forces a smile, rolling onto her back and looking up at her wife. Chloe is still wearing that damn bikini and Beca is thankful for the distraction now. Chloe looks relaxed and has gotten some sun, so her skin is starting to take on that perfect vacation glow. Chloe sits down on the edge of the bed, resting her hand on Beca's thigh as she leans over to check on the sleeping baby. Satisfied that their son is fast asleep, she leans in and gives Beca a quick peck on the lips before standing back up and pulling at the string of her bikini top.

"Jack is still at the pool with Bree and Stacie." The bikini top falls to the ground beside the bed, but Chloe turns and shoots Beca a coy look over her shoulder. "I was thinking that we need to shower before dinner later."

Beca groans quietly, her eyes raking over the freckled skin of her wife's back. Chloe's thumbs hook into the top of her bikini bottoms, lingering there for a few seconds as she shoots a wink at her stunned wife. "I really enjoyed waking up with you this morning… and was thinking that while we have a brief period with Alex sleeping we could continue what we started earlier." Her bravado fades a bit, watching as Beca seemed to be conflicted about something for a few seconds. But the moment passes, and Beca is standing by the bed a second later, taking a moment to place a pillow on either side of Alex so he couldn't roll off the bed.

Beca knows that she needs to talk to Chloe about the email but as soon as her hands reach out to touch Chloe's bare hips, her lips are on Chloe's and she begins to push Chloe backwards toward the bathroom. They stumble over Chloe's discarded bikini top, hands exploring bare skin as they kiss hungrily. As soon as Beca feels her feet hit the cool tile of the bathroom floor, she reaches out behind her and pulls the door closed. She pushes Chloe up against the counter, dipping her head to kiss along Chloe's neck. She can feel Chloe's fingers pressing into her lower back in response. Beca lets out a quiet groan as Chloe's hands slip beneath the fabric of her bikini bottoms, sliding along the gentle curve of her ass. Moving back up Chloe's neck, she starts kissing a trail along her jaw and back up to capture Chloe's lips once again. Beca knows that it has been a while since they did anything like this, and it's not going to take much for her to be too far gone, especially now that Chloe's hands have moved to running up and down her thighs. She pulls her lips away from Chloe's and turns so that she can turn on the water in the shower. Although she absolutely loves being with Chloe, she is grateful for the brief reprieve to combat the onslaught of arousal.

"Hey! Come back." Chloe whines, running a hand through her tousled auburn hair. She grins when Beca turns back to her, and pushing herself off the granite counter, she closes the distance between them. Tangling one hand in Beca's hair, her other hand slides down Beca's back to the clasp of her bikini top. She leans in for another kiss, unhooking Beca's top as her tongue teases against her wife's. She smiles into the kiss when she feels Beca's top drop to the floor, and only seconds later, she feels Beca's hands on her breasts, gently kneading and pulling at her nipples.

"Shit, babe, that feels amazing." Chloe pulls back, panting slightly as she rests her forehead against her wife's. Beca's hands still, and Chloe watches as Beca's hands move to clasp together with hers. Chloe looks up from their joined hands, her eyes meeting Beca's. "Everything good?"

Beca leans in and kisses Chloe again, the kiss feeling sweeter, and not as hungry as the previous ones. "It's just been…well, it's been a while since we did this, and I needed a second."

Chloe brings their joined hands up and places them by her shoulders, encouraging Beca to wrap her arms around her neck. Beca leans into her, and the two women enjoy the feeling of their chests pressing together, skin against skin.

"I love you." Chloe whispers, sliding her hands along Beca's sides. She leans in and gives Beca a kiss on the forehead, then one on the cheek, one along her jaw, and then finally meeting her lips once again. "I know after making you wait months for this that you deserve more than a shower quickie, but honestly right now, I just want to make you feel good." Her hand slides lower, across the soft skin of Beca's belly and lower, her fingers just dipping under the fabric of the bikini bottom. "Besides, Aubrey said she would watch the kids for a couple hours after dinner, so you can return the favor later."

Chloe's hand ventures lower, hearing Beca curse when her middle finger makes contact with Beca's clit, rubbing a couple slow circles there, enjoying the sexy noise the brunette makes as she does so. Beca's hips shift, trying to get Chloe to provide more pressure where she needs it. Chloe pulls her hand out of Beca's bottoms, grinning as she pulls the shower door open. She leans in and kisses Beca hungrily, while pulling down her own bikini bottoms. When she is finished, she pushes Beca purposefully into the large shower as water streams down over them. When Beca's back hits the wall, Chloe kisses her again, making Beca moan again. Dropping to her knees, she rakes her fingers up Beca's thighs before sliding off her bottoms. After helping her wife step out of them, she looks up at Beca, and the look on Chloe's face is enough to make Beca come right then.

Chloe places a kiss just above her clit and Beca immediately threads her fingers into Chloe's hair, needing to have a physical connection to her wife in that moment. Chloe nudges Beca's legs wider, and with a look that Beca hasn't seen in the past several months, Chloe leans in and tastes her wife, moaning as she remembers just how much she's missed this. Beca's hips are already squirming, so Chloe reaches up and grips them, hoping to keep them still.

"Oh my god Chlo." Beca's eyes snap closed as she enjoys the pleasure that her wife is giving her. She immediately opens them again, wanting to watch every second of the erotic sight of Chloe eating her out. Beca knows it's been a long time, but honestly, she is impressed that Chloe can have her so close to the edge after just a few moments. "Fuck, dude!" Beca can feel her abs tightening as Chloe hits that perfect spot repeatedly. She loves that Chloe can do this to her, make her feel like this. It is something that she fantasized about for such a long time. Longer than she really cares to admit. "Shit…Chlo…wait, wait, I'm so close." Beca knew it wasn't going to take much longer, and she suddenly felt the overwhelming urge to kiss her wife. She slides her hand from Chloe's hair so that it's resting on Chloe's cheek. "Baby, I need you up here."

Chloe loves the look in Beca's eyes, and she knows that Beca is probably seconds away from orgasm, given the way her eyes are unfocused, and her chest is heaving. Chloe takes one last lick then stands to give Beca what she wants. She's not mad about it, being able to be close to Beca and kiss her when she comes is one of Chloe's favorite things to do. She captures Beca's lips again as she slides two fingers in, and the noise Beca makes causes Chloe's pussy to clench. She loves the feeling of being inside Beca, warm and wet and tight around her fingers. Beca's hips begin to move as Chloe picks up the pace, and both women continue to kiss hungrily. A few seconds later, Beca's hands are clutching at Chloe's shoulders as Chloe rubs her thumb over Beca's clit, and then Beca is clenching around her fingers, a long, quiet moan escaping as she does. Chloe slows her fingers down, guiding Beca through her orgasm. Her own clit is throbbing with arousal, and she contemplates quickly taking care of herself as Beca continues to pant beside her.

"Oh…my…god." Beca wraps her arms around Chloe, pressing her face against Chloe's damp neck. The water continues to beat down on them from the large rain showerhead above them. Chloe watches the droplets of water beading down the smooth expanse of Beca's back and towards the curve of her ass. It's not helping with the level of arousal she is currently feeling. At all. Chloe pulls her fingers gently from Beca, tilting Beca's face up for a kiss.

Beca can immediately see how worked up Chloe is, as they pull back after kissing for a few moments. They probably should finish up their shower in case Alex wakes up soon, but Beca can't think of anything but touching Chloe. She flips them around, pushing Chloe up against the wall and sliding her hand down between them. Chloe gasps when she feels Beca's nimble fingers running along her.

"Baby…we don't have time. Alex will be up any second." Chloe tries to protest, but groans when Beca's middle finger enters her slowly.

"Chlo I'm pretty sure this won't take long. I could see how worked up you were after you went down on me." Beca's teeth graze along the shell of her ear. "I know you Chlo. I know your body." Beca pulls her finger out, and teasingly runs it around Chloe's clit.

"Beca Mitchell." Chloe can feel her breath beginning to come unevenly. "Stop…teasing." She grunts out.

Beca grins, but the grin disappears. She leans in, kissing Chloe. "I know this is our first time after Alex. You'll tell me if anything hurts?" Her eyes are serious, and Chloe thinks it is impossible to love her thoughtful and sexy wife any more.

Chloe nods, pulling Beca closer and kissing her with everything she has. "I'm fine. Now…please fuck me."

"Yes dear." Beca quips with a cocky grin on her face. Both women moan as Beca does exactly that.


	10. Chapter 10

Dinner is a raucous affair now that all the Bellas have made it to the resort and they are all together once again. Chloe _almost_ feels bad for the other guests that are having dinner in the immediate vicinity of the group of women, but as the group falls back into their regular shenanigans, Chloe forgets about anyone else and just lets herself enjoy getting to spend time with her Bella family. Every so often her eyes scan the room to check on which woman is currently holding Alex, and to make sure Bella and Jack are still engrossed in their coloring books that Stacie and Aubrey had strategically brought for the kids. Jessica and Ashley are currently taking turns holding Alex who is handling the attention fairly well given it's almost his bedtime, and Chloe heads over to the bar to grab a glass of wine. Once at the bar, she decides to order another beer for Beca, who last time she checked, seemed to be about done with the one she had been nursing over the course of dinner. A few moments later the bartender has placed their drinks on the bar in front of her and Chloe is giving him their room information so he can charge it to their room, when she feels arms wrapping around her waist. Smiling as her wife kisses her cheek, Chloe turns slightly and is met with Beca's smiling face.

"You're like, _super_ hot, can I buy you a drink?" Beca winks as she sidles up next to Chloe.

Chloe laughs at Beca's attempt at a pickup line, sliding the beer the bartender just placed in front of her to her left so it's now in front of Beca.

"Sorry but I'm one step ahead of you." Chloe leans in to kiss the pout from her wife's lips. "Having fun?"

Nodding, Beca holds her beer up until Chloe follows suit, tilting her wine glass slightly so it clinks against Beca's beer bottle. Beca takes a pull from the bottle as she turns so she is facing the group, feeling Chloe turning around as well as they take in the chatty group for a few moments.

"It's only when we're all back together that I realize just how much I miss this bunch of nerds." Beca muses, taking another sip from her beer. She chuckles as she watches an interaction between Amy and Emily, the latter blushing and becoming flustered at whatever ridiculous thing Amy had just blurted out. "As crazy as I know the rest of this trip will be, I'm glad we could make it."

"Me too." Chloe replies. "We haven't all been together since the USO tour."

"Really? Oh, right, Lilly and Cynthia-Rose didn't make it to our wedding." Beca fiddles with the label on her beer bottle. "Also, like, are we supposed to call her Lilly or Esther? I'm still kind of confused about that to be honest."

Chloe chuckles, swirling her wine in the glass before taking a sip. "I have a lot of questions about Lilly, and not a lot of answers." She replies, her eyes moving across the room to where the aforementioned Bella was having what seemed like a fairly normal conversation with Aubrey.

"Fair point."

Beca and Chloe remain at the bar for a few minutes, content to sip their drinks and watch as their closest friends interact with one another. Having everyone back together reminds them of multitudes of fond memories that were made in the Bella house as well as on the national and international stage.

Beca's phone must have buzzed in her pocket, so Chloe watches as her wife pulls out her phone and checks the notification flashing on the screen. Chloe doesn't miss the quiet sigh as Beca pockets the phone once again.

"Everything good?"

"What? Oh, yeah, totally good." Beca replies, taking a sip of her beer before Chloe can comment on her forced smile.

Chloe notices a slight change in her wife's demeanor but doesn't want to ruin the rest of the night. Giving Beca a gentle squeeze on her upper arm, she kisses her cheek and motions toward the beer that is in her hand. "Drink up. I'm going to go give Aubrey and Stacie the diaper bag and make sure they're all set for watching the boys for a couple hours. I'll meet you in our room in fifteen minutes." Her fingers trail down Beca's arm seductively as she takes a couple steps away, turning and heading back toward the group. "I hope you're ready for round two." She stage-whispers over her shoulder, enjoying the blush that starts to make an appearance on Beca's face.

Beca knows she is blushing as Chloe makes her way back over to their friends and takes a long pull from her beer, her eyes finding their way to appreciate the way Chloe's ass looks in her dress. She can't help but be excited that in a short time she will be taking that dress off her smoking hot wife and her hands will be all over that ass. With a quiet groan, Beca turns back to the bar and pulls her phone out once again, this time unlocking the phone so she can pull up the email that Charlie had just sent her. Her heart begins to beat faster as she scans the email, and then her heart sinks when she realizes that there isn't any way she can get out of the proposed tour. Beca puts her beer down on the bar top and runs a hand down her face in frustration. "Fuck."

Picking up the beer bottle again, Beca decides that chugging the rest of it seems like a good idea. She motions toward the bartender for another one, as she places the empty bottle back on the bar top. Her thoughts are racing, wondering how Chloe will take the news, and assuming the worst possible reaction. This was such poor timing, it literally could not be worse. They had a four-month-old, an almost five-year-old, and Chloe was just about to start back at work after an extended maternity leave. Beca didn't want to deal with this. She couldn't deal with this.

Accepting the new beer with a grateful nod to the bartender, Beca takes a long drink and decides to put off telling Chloe for the time being. She's not sure if it's the slight buzz she has going on, or it's the knowledge that she's about to have a repeat performance of earlier today, but all Beca knows is she wants to spend some time naked and enjoying her wife. After all, Beca Mitchell is the queen of avoidance.

* * *

 _It's that strange time where it could be considered very late at night or very early in the morning, and unfortunately for Beca and Chloe, Jack has a new routine of waking up right around this specific time for the past couple weeks. They honestly should expect it at this point, but both women were finally getting used to the baby sleeping through the night the past month or so, that they were hoping it was a fluke for the first few days. But it wasn't, and sleep regression was a total bitch. At nearly five months old, Jack was an easy baby, a fact that Beca was not surprised by given that Chloe was his mother. The dynamic had shifted somewhat in the weeks following Jack's birth, with Beca and Chloe falling into an easy routine of co-parenting. Between all the feedings, diaper changes, and hours spent taking care of Jack, neither woman had a chance to sit down and actually process their feelings for the other._

 _Jack's cries pierce the silence in the master bedroom, and Beca groans, rolling over and pushing her face into pillow. When she feels Chloe's quiet sigh and movement next to her, she reaches out and places a hand on Chloe's back._

 _"No…stay here, I'll go." Beca yawns but slides her body out of the bed. Chloe is still attempting to get up, and Beca waves her off again. "It's fine Chlo. I'm working from home today, so I can nap if I need to. Go back to bed."_

 _"You're the best Becs." Chloe yawns, then smiles sleepily at Beca as she watches the younger woman slip on some sweatpants over the boyshorts she had been sleeping in and head in the direction of Jack's room as the baby's cries continue to come over the monitor. "There's some breast milk in the fridge if he needs to eat again." Chloe settles down into the bed, rolling onto her side and pulling a pillow to her chest. She strategically leaves the monitor on for times just like these, her heart often melting as she was privy to the most adorable late-night musings between Beca and the baby._

 _Down the hallway, Beca enters Jack's room and flips on one of the small lamps, her eyes immediately moving to where Jack was crying in the crib. "Okay, okay…calm down Jack. I'm here." Scooping the crying baby out of the crib, Beca kisses his temple as she settles him against her chest. She can feel his body shuddering with each cry, but after a few moments the baby begins to quiet as he is comforted by Beca's gentle movement as she slowly paces the room. Jack's head nuzzles into her neck, and Beca can't help but grin, feeling a wave of affection for the little guy in her arms. Beca had never considered herself to be the maternal type but holding Jack in her arms was definitely up there on the list of Beca's favorite things. She knew Jack wasn't her son, but Chloe had allowed Beca to co-parent in every sense of the term, and Beca was undoubtedly and unashamedly in love with the handsome little boy currently curled up against her chest. "You hungry? Need a little midnight snack? Let's go grab a bottle and see if that does the trick."_

 _Beca carefully makes her way to the kitchen to grab one of the bottles of breast milk, falling into the much-practiced routine of propping the baby against her shoulder as she one-handedly warmed up the bottle under a stream of warm water from the sink. Jack continued to fuss slightly as she did, which made her think that he actually was hungry, so grabbing the milk was a good call. Once the milk was at a good temperature, Beca heads back to Jack's room, quietly shushing the baby as she settles into the rocking chair next to the window. She adjusts Jack into the crook of her arm, smiling as Jack immediately takes the offered bottle and starts to eat with gusto._

 _As Jack eats, Beca relaxes into the chair, grateful for some alone time with the baby, even if it was at a god-forsaken hour. She secretly loves these late-night feedings. She loves talking to Jack, singing to Jack, feeling his warm little body snuggled up against her. She loved the times when Chloe was there as well, allowing Beca to feel as though she had an actual family, even if Chloe wasn't her partner and Jack wasn't her son. The lines had blurred somewhat though, and Beca was content to let that happen, not wanting to have to have a discussion about what her exact role in Jack and Chloe's lives would be. Don't fix what ain't broke, right?_

 _"God, you're really the most perfect baby I've ever seen." Beca says, studying the baby in her arms. Jack smiles around the bottle and kicks his legs, clearly happy to be eating and getting some attention from Beca. "I never thought I'd be feeding Chloe's baby at 3am, but shit happens I guess." Beca grins as Jack continues to eat hungrily, his tiny hands moving to attempt to hold the bottle with Beca._

 _The baby continues to eat for a few minutes, and Beca is content to watch, taking in his features as his eyelids start to droop. The bottle is finally empty and Beca places it on the table beside the chair before bringing Jack up to snuggle against her chest once again. Rubbing his back gently, she rocks the chair slowly as she tries to get him to fall back asleep._

 _"I love you so much dude." Beca says quietly. "I was totally scared shitless at first, not gonna lie, but you're so much like your mama that it makes my heart hurt." Jack lets out a tiny grunt and Beca continues to rub small circles along his back. "Your mom is the best thing to happen to me, but I'm quickly realizing that you're a very close second. You have your mama's smile, I can already tell. Her smile makes my heart stop every time. Just between you and me, I'm totally head over heels in love with your mom. She's the only person I've ever loved, I think. Until you came along anyway."_

 _Once she is satisfied that Jack is asleep, Beca continues to rock gently in the chair, enjoying her snuggles with the baby. After several blissful minutes, Beca feels her own eyelids starting to droop, and gently stands to tuck Jack back into his crib, hopefully for the rest of the night. Bending down, she places him in the crib, rubbing her hand along the top of his head and her finger along his tiny clenched fist. Straightening up, she flips off the light and gently closes the door behind her before heading back to her bedroom._

 _As she enters the darkened bedroom, she notices Chloe sitting up against the headboard with her knees drawn up against her chest. It's dark, but she is able to see Chloe wiping her cheek with the back of her hand and Beca detours to Chloe's side of the bed, perching herself on the edge and resting her hand tentatively on Chloe's bare knee._

 _"Chlo? What's the matter?"_

 _Chloe sniffles quietly and points her finger in the direction of the monitor, and Beca's heart clenches for a second when she sees the illuminated red light indicating that it is on and realizes that Chloe had been listening to the confession that had occurred in the other room. Chloe wipes her cheek again._

 _"Do you mean it?" Chloe reaches out and rests a cool hand against Beca's cheek, watching as Beca's eyes close when she makes contact._

 _Beca's eyes open, and Chloe easily sees emotion and uncertainty in them as they intensely study Chloe's face._

 _"Do you mean it?" Chloe repeats, just as gently as the first time she posed the question. "Do you love me?"_

 _Beca's eyes begin to tear, and she is only able to nod as she reaches forward and pulls Chloe to her, her hands clutching desperately at Chloe's pajama top as her face presses against Chloe's neck._

 _"For the longest time."_

 _Beca's confession is so quiet that Chloe almost misses it. But she doesn't. Beca loves her. She wraps her arms around Beca, wanting to pull her as close as possible, a smile starting to spread across her face despite the tears that are still falling. She can feel Beca's tears that have started to fall warm and wet against the skin of her neck. She moves one of her arms from around Beca's thin waist to trail her fingertips along Beca's upper back._

 _Both women are content to be holding each other as Beca's secret is finally out in the open. Chloe's heart is beating so hard that she swears Beca can hear it, and she suddenly knows she can't keep silent anymore about her own feelings. Pulling back slightly, she kisses Beca's forehead, her lips lingering there for longer than normal before she rests her forehead against Beca's, feeling another tear slipping down her cheek._

 _"Beca." Chloe pulls back, placing her hands on either side of Beca's tear-stained cheeks. Beca doesn't look up, and Chloe rubs her thumbs along Beca's cheekbones. "Beca." She repeats, slightly more insistent, smiling sweetly as Beca's blue eyes finally look up and meet hers. Leaning in, Chloe presses a kiss to the corner of Beca's mouth._

 _"I love you too." She whispers, watching as Beca's eyes widen at her admission. "Beca Mitchell, I love you so much that it hurts. We've danced around this for so many years and I can't do it anymore. You…god…I'm kind of a little upset that it took me eavesdropping over the baby monitor to get us to talk about this but…"_

 _Chloe is surprised when Beca's arms suddenly reach out and wrap around her and pull her down to the mattress. She settles on her back, and Beca moves to straddle her, gently settling her legs on either side as she peers down with a look that Chloe has seen before, but now knows it's a look of love. Chloe isn't quite sure what to do with her hands, but a decision is made for her when Beca reaches forward and takes Chloe's hands in hers and laces their fingers together. Beca is still for a second, her brain attempting to memorize this moment, knowing that it will be one of the defining moments in her life. Everything was about to change._

 _The moment of apprehension passes quickly, and Beca can't help the happy smile that appears on her face. Moving their joined hands slowly so that she has now pinned Chloe to the bed, she leans down and kisses Chloe, something that she has wanted to do since the first time she laid eyes on her. Chloe immediately responds, her lips moving against Beca's sensuously but tenderly, and Beca knows that she is in trouble as she is immediately addicted to Chloe's kisses._

 _Pulling back after a blissful few seconds, Beca's eyes meet Chloe's again, immediately seeing the love and adoration there. Beca smiles and leans down again, pausing just before their lips meet, her breath mixing with Chloe's._

 _"I love you." Beca whispers again, leaning in to close the distance and capturing Chloe's lips in another sweet kiss._

* * *

The next morning Beca wakes up to Chloe pulling back the covers, disturbing their warm cocoon. With a quiet groan, Beca reaches out blindly and tries to prevent Chloe from getting out of bed. Both women had enjoyed their two hours of alone time before Aubrey and Stacie returned their children, spending the majority of it naked and more than making up for the five-month dry spell they had just broken. Once Jack and Alex had been returned to their mothers, both fast asleep thanks to Aubrey and Stacie, everyone had settled in for a restful night's sleep, especially Beca and Chloe who had exhausted themselves with their adult activities.

"Babe…it's too early." Beca groans, rolling onto her side as Chloe sits on the edge of the bed. "For the love of all that is holy, please come back to bed."

Chloe twists slightly, resting her hand on Beca's back as she leans down and kisses her wife's cheek.

"You're being dramatic Beca. Go back to sleep. I'm headed down to the gym to meet Aubrey for a workout. I'll be back in a little bit." Chloe runs her fingers through Beca's hair before standing and heading into the bathroom to freshen up.

Beca is fast asleep when Chloe exits the bathroom, moving to grab a pair of leggings and a tanktop to change into. Chloe notices she is slightly sore from her and Beca's activities last night, and Chloe can't help but grin when she remembers why. Tugging on her workout clothes, she grabs a pair of socks and locates her running shoes before slipping them on and tying them. Wanting to have something to entertain herself with as she runs on the treadmill, Chloe crosses the room to grab the iPad on Beca's side table as well as a pair of headphones. Grabbing her phone and one of the room keys, Chloe checks on Alex and Jack before exiting the room and heading down to the gym to meet Aubrey.

Aubrey is already stretching when she enters the spacious hotel gym, and Chloe puts down the iPad and headphones before joining her best friend as they prepare their muscles for a workout.

"I'm having flashbacks to Bella rehearsals." Chloe chuckles as the two women continue to stretch. "I used to hate it when you made us do those damn stair workouts."

Aubrey laughs lightly. "God, I was such a bitch."

Chloe shrugs. "Well at least it paid off, right? Plus, you and I still have totally awesome bods, so I guess it wasn't the worst thing."

Aubrey grins and moves toward one of the elliptical machines. "I'm going to start off with some cardio and then we can do some strength training if you're feeling up to it."

"Sure, sounds good." Chloe finishes her last couple stretches and heads over to the treadmill she's claimed with the iPad. She hops onto the treadmill, first putting the headphones into the jack before pushing the button for the home screen of the iPad. Chloe is surprised when the first thing that appears on the screen is Beca's email inbox, and her eyes are quickly drawn to the subject line of one of the emails.

Summer Tour Details.

 _Wait, what?_ Chloe thinks, immediately touching the screen to open the email and scanning its contents. Her heart begins to beat faster when she realizes what the email is laying out.

Beca is going back on tour. And she didn't feel the need to tell Chloe about it.

* * *

 **Yikes...sorry for the cliffhanger! I'll update soon though, I'm on vacation through the rest of the weekend. Thanks to everyone for reading. I'm still getting back into writing mode and I'm really glad you guys are enjoying this so far!**


	11. Chapter 11

Beca adjusts Alex slightly in her arms, a smile playing across her face as she watches her son take down his bottle with gusto. Jack was curled up in the bed next to her, having woken up a little bit ago, but was content to watch cartoons for the time being, as he clearly wasn't fully awake yet. Beca was a little surprised that Chloe hadn't yet returned from the gym, but for now was content to spend some time with her little guys snuggled up in bed. The upcoming tour is constantly in the back of her mind, and she tries not to think about leaving her kids and wife behind for a few months. Leaving Chloe and Jack behind for her last tour was the hardest thing Beca had ever done, and she knows its going to be even harder now with Alex in the mix. She really needed to talk to Chloe about this, and soon.

Running her hand gently though Jack's hair to get his attention, she laughs when her stomach growls loudly.

"Mom!" Jack giggles and turns so that he is looking at Beca with a surprised expression. "Was that your tummy?" He rolls toward her and gives it a poke.

Beca laughs, squirming when Jack pokes her again. "Okay dude, that's enough, I'm trying to feed your brother." Jack settles against her and rests his head against her shoulder. "I guess I'm a little hungry. Mama will be back any minute and then we can go for breakfast."

Jack nods against her. "Can I have pancakes today?" He reaches out and gently rubs his fingers along his little brother's head, a move that never fails to make Beca melt. He was such a good big brother to Alex.

"Ooooh, yeah, pancakes sound great." Beca replies, looking at the clock on the bedside table again with a frown. "You know pancakes are my favorite." Alex finishes his bottle and Beca lifts him to her shoulder to coax a burp out of him.

"Me too. Mama makes yummy ones."

Beca is about to reply when she hears the door to the other room open and close and can't help the smile that breaks out on her face when her wife appears in the doorway to their room. Chloe's face is flushed from her time in the gym, but Beca loves the sight of her wife with a messy bun in running shorts and a workout tank. It reminds her of the many hours of Bella practices over the years and stealing secret glances at her beautiful redhead.

Chloe doesn't enter the room fully, instead leaning against the doorframe and taking in the sight of her family snuggled up in the large bed. It tugs at her heart, but when her eyes settle on her wife she can't help but immediately be upset at the idea of Beca leaving to go on tour.

"Mama! We're so hungry!" Jack slides off the bed and runs to his mother, running directly into Chloe's legs and wrapping his arms around them. "I need pancakes!"

Chloe smiles, leaning down to smooth down Jack's bedhead before kissing the top of his head. "Oh, you need them, huh?"

Jack looks up at her, looking very serious about the prospective pancakes. "Yes." He nods emphatically, pointing back toward his brunette mother. "Mom's tummy needs them too, it's making noises."

Chloe laughs and presses another kiss to Jack's head. "Okay then. Mama needs a quick shower and then we'll go get breakfast." She gives him a gentle pat on the butt. "Go pick out some clothes and mom will help you get dressed."

Jack disappears into the other room to grab some clothes, and Chloe enters the room fully to give Alex a good morning kiss. She deposits her phone, headphones, and iPad on the bed next to Beca before holding out her arms to receive the baby.

"How was your workout with Aubrey?" Beca passes Alex to her wife. "Is she as much of a sadist as she used to be?"

Chloe accepts the baby with a smile and snuggles the happy baby against her for a few seconds. "It was fine." She kisses his chubby cheek then hands him back to Beca, who is sitting cross-legged on their bed. "I need to shower." She enters the bathroom, closing the door behind her swiftly.

Beca is slightly put off by Chloe's curt response, but assumes it is due to an intense workout. Brushing it off, she slides out of the bed and starts to get her kids ready for the day. Aubrey had planned a jam-packed itinerary, but Beca hoped she would be able to make some time to talk to Chloe about the tour.

* * *

"Oh god…how much farther?" Fat Amy pants, stopping to bend over slightly, placing her hands on her knees and breathing heavily.

Beca rolls her eyes but stops to keep her friend company as she rests. "Ames, my four-year-old is actually _skipping_ along the trail. Take the drama down a notch." Beca looks up to where Jack has just caught up with Chloe and Aubrey at the front of the group.

The group of Bellas is taking a gentle hike through the lush Hawaiian jungle on a tour led by a few of the resort staff. This wasn't typically Beca's idea of a good time but spending time with her closest friends on the way to a waterfall for some swimming has surprisingly been enjoyable thus far. Minus Amy's constant griping about the less-than-strenuous physical activity.

"Shake it off Amy." Beca gives her friend a sympathetic pat on the back. "Also, I'd like to point out that my tiny ass has a baby strapped to my chest and I'm not bitching nearly as much as you." She gestures toward the front of the group. "Come on…I think we're almost there. It looks like there's a big clearing up ahead."

Amy straightens up, red-faced, and sucks in a few big breaths. "My sexy fat ass isn't used to physical exertion." She fixes the sweatband around her head and starts stumbling down the trail after the rest of the group. "The altitude here is making it hard to breathe."

"Amy we are _literally_ at sea level." Beca peers down to make sure Alex is still fine in the carrier strapped to her chest and follows after Fat Amy. "At least there's no bear traps out here."

A few minutes later the duo has caught up with the rest of the Bellas, and the group is setting their backpacks down as they take in the beautiful views of the waterfall that is spilling into a small lake in the middle of the jungle. As much as Beca wants to hate Aubrey for making her trek through the jungle, this is actually pretty cool. She looks around to see where her wife and son have gotten off to and is not surprised to see Jack stripping off his t-shirt and walking toward the edge of the water. Beca moves to join them, her eyes raking up Chloe's legs and appreciating how short her wife's running shorts are. Just before Beca joins her wife and son, she is stopped by Emily.

"Can I take Alex for a bit?" The younger woman holds out her arms, bouncing excitedly as she waits for an answer. "I need my baby fix for the day."

Beca grins, her soft spot for the youngest Bella evident as she can't help but grin at Emily's enthusiasm for everything.

"Yeah, sure Legacy." Beca unsnaps one side of the carrier and lets Emily pluck Alex from his spot nestled against her chest. "We discovered he loves the water yesterday, so feel free to let him splash a bit if you want. It's pretty cute."

Emily holds the baby protectively against her with a wide smile on her face. "O-M-G, he is absolutely the cutest Beca!" She giggles when Alex smiles at her. "He looks just like you. It's kind of freaky."

"Well, he is my kid Em. It'd be freakier if he didn't." Beca finishes taking off the backpack and drops it on a nearby rock. She smooths down Alex's downy hair that is sticking straight up. "Okay bud, have fun spending time with Auntie Em." She gives Emily a reassuring smile. "Bring him back if he gets fussy."

Emily nods excitedly and walks off to where Cynthia-Rose, Amy, and Flo are sitting down. Beca smiles when she hears the group cooing collectively at Alex in greeting and turns to continue toward Chloe and Jack. Stacie is already in the water with Bella, and Jack is splashing in the shallows a few feet from Chloe.

"Hey." Beca wraps an arm around Chloe's waist. "Have a good hike?"

Chloe nods, turning to smile briefly at Beca. "This place is beautiful." Her gaze returns to keeping an eye on Jack. "How did Alex do?"

"Totally fine. Amy was a way bigger baby than our four-month-old. I contemplated just leaving her behind at a couple points."

Chloe giggles, looking over to where their Australian friend was now floating happily in the water. As ridiculous as Fat Amy was, Chloe couldn't help but laugh at her constant antics. Glancing around at the rest of the group, spread out in groups of two or three, Chloe's heart felt full knowing that she was surrounded by her closest friends and family. The only thing putting a damper on her day was the looming topic of Beca's upcoming tour.

Sighing quietly, Chloe decides that now is as good of a time as any to bring it up. Linking her hand with Beca's, she looks at Beca nervously.

"Come sit with me?" Chloe tugs gently and looking around, finds an area of rocks overlooking the shallow water several feet away from where Jack was playing.

"Definitely." Beca replies with a grin, easily following her wife's lead as they go a short distance away, eventually settling side by side on the sun-warmed rocks. Tilting her head up so the sun hits her face, Beca slides her sunglasses down over her eyes and sighs happily. "This definitely beats spending eighteen hours a day in the studio."

Beca can feel Chloe stiffen beside her, and immediately feels bad about her flippant comment. The long hours she had been spending at work had become a sore subject lately, and Beca wasn't sure how to address it. Even though she loves her job, the long days and nights lately had been taking a toll on her family life for sure.

It's quiet for a few moments, the only sounds are the rush of the waterfall and the various conversations coming from the other Bellas.

"When were you going to tell me that you were going back on tour?" Chloe asks quietly, unable to keep her silence about it anymore. Maybe this wasn't the time or place to figure out the details, but she wanted to know what Beca was thinking. "I saw the email…by mistake. On your iPad."

"Chlo." Beca sighs, turning slightly so she can look at Chloe's face. "I was going to tell you, I swear. I literally just found out about it yesterday." She hangs her head, rubbing nervously at the back of her neck. Reaching out, she attempts to grab Chloe's hand, cringing internally when Chloe pulls away.

"So, what does this mean Beca? The label just tells you to go and you just leave your family for four months?" Chloe can feel her anger and helplessness about the situation rising quickly.

"Come on Chloe, you know that's not how it works." Beca groans. "If it were up to me I'd tell the label to go fuck themselves. But it's in my contract and I can't opt out. Trust me, I already asked." She rubs a hand down her face in frustration. "It's been over three years since I last toured, I've actually been lucky to go that long without touring."

Chloe fiddles with her wedding rings, twisting them around her finger distractedly as she tries to compose her thoughts. "Yes…lucky for us that instead of touring you've been spending almost every waking hour at the studio."

As soon as the words are out of her mouth, Chloe immediately regrets the tone with which she said them. She can physically feel Beca reacting, stiffening up as she processes what Chloe just said.

"It's my _job_ Chlo!" Beca's voice has begun to rise, and she looks around nervously, hoping that the rest of the women aren't listening in to the conversation. "God…I can't believe you right now." She leans back and takes a few breaths to steady herself. "I'm sorry things have been crazy, but all of this is out of my hands. And it really fucking sucks. The last time I went on tour was hard enough on you and Jack. And now we have Alex. I feel absolutely shitty that I have to leave you guys again."

Chloe drops her head, remembering the last time Beca had gone on tour.

 _Chloe is finishing up putting away her leftovers from the takeout she had ordered for dinner. Glancing over her shoulder quickly, she makes sure that Jack hasn't escaped from where she had left him a few minutes ago. Satisfied that the thirteen-month-old was safely within the confines of the living room still, Chloe stacks up the containers of food and transfers them into the fridge. Wiping her hands on a towel, she picks up her phone from the counter, checking quickly to see if she has any texts from Beca. Disappointed to see there aren't any texts, Chloe heads into the living room, joining Jack on the floor to play for a few minutes before starting his bedtime routine._

 _Beca had been on tour for a little over a month so far and the separation had been hard for both women. Beca had been trying to call or video chat every couple of days, but Chloe was definitely feeling the physical absence even harder than Beca's first tour when she was pregnant. She and Beca had been a couple for a little over six months when Beca left for the first tour stop in Houston, and Chloe had underestimated how hard it would be to be separated from her girlfriend. She knew that Beca was having fun performing night after night, but Beca had recently verbalized just how hard it was for her to be away from Chloe and Jack, and that made Chloe feel much worse. Being alone with Jack every day made Chloe extremely thankful for Beca as a partner, and she was counting the days until Beca would be home again and they could return to their regular life._

 _Jack picks up one of his cars and clumsily stands up and toddles over to Chloe, who holds her arms out to break his fall should he stumble. He had only recently figured out this walking thing, conveniently waiting until a week after Beca had left to really get the hang of walking._

 _"Careful Jack." Chloe giggles as Jack grins as he toddles the last couple steps into her arms. "Hi sweet boy!" Kissing his temple, Chloe settles him in her lap, scooting back slightly so that her back is resting against the bottom of the couch. Chloe is just about to reach for one of the toy cars nearby when her phone buzzes from where it is resting on the floor. When she realizes who is calling, a smile appears on her face and she quickly accepts the FaceTime request, holding the phone out in front of her._

 _"Hey Chlo!" Beca's face appears on the screen. It's dark wherever she is, and Chloe assumes she's in her bunk on the tour bus as Beca has her headphones in her ears._

 _Chloe adjusts the phone so it is angled to where Beca can see both her and Jack in the picture. "Hi babe! I was just about to get Jack ready for bed. Say hi Jack." Chloe points at her phone, her smile growing wider when Jack notices Beca on the screen and shrieks happily._

 _"Hey dude!" Beca's image is hard to make out, but Chloe can't mistake the goofy grin on her girlfriend's face as she waves in greeting at Jack._

 _Chloe settles Jack against her, noticing he is rubbing his eyes. Sighing as she knows she is probably going to have to cut the FaceTime session short to put him to bed, Chloe focuses back on Beca._

 _"We miss you babe." Chloe says with a sad smile._

 _Beca adjusts herself in her bunk with a sigh. "I miss you too. So much."_

 _"What city are you in tonight?"_

 _Beca props herself up on her elbow. "Boston. The show just finished. The bus is about to head out. I can't wait to get some sleep. The crowd was insane tonight but I'm exhausted."_

 _Chloe nods, feeling Jack nuzzling his face sleepily into her shirt. "Are you having fun? Is it like the last tour?"_

 _"Yeah. Sort of, I guess." Beca pauses for a moment before shrugging. "It's different this time because I have you guys now." She looks away from the camera for a minute. "I have a family now."_

 _Chloe's heart flutters, feeling emotional at Beca's response. She smiles lovingly in reply, hoping that even through the crappy FaceTime connection, Beca can see just how much Chloe loves her._

 _"Your family can't wait until you get home." Chloe replies quietly. "Your girlfriend especially can't wait to kiss you again."_

 _Beca's head drops back to her pillow with a quiet groan. "I miss your kisses the most I'm pretty sure."_

 _"Not sex?" Chloe asks, winking playfully at Beca, knowing it will get the desired response._

 _"Oh, come on…that's not even a fair question Chlo!" Beca splutters, her eyes shutting tightly as she tries to not think about the night before she left for tour, where Chloe and Beca had spent several hours making memories in their bed for Beca to have while she was gone. She opens her eyes again, resting her head back against her pillow as she studies the image on the screen for several seconds. "God Chloe…even on FaceTime you're absolutely gorgeous."_

 _Smiling wistfully, Chloe feels the full weight of their few-thousand-mile separation. "I love you Beca." Touching her fingers to her lips, she brings them up toward the camera, sending a virtual kiss to the woman on the other side of the country. Although Chloe loved to be able to communicate like this with Beca as much as possible, their conversations tended to quickly turn into the two women talking about how much they missed each other._

 _"I love you too." Beca replies quietly. "Only seventy-seven more days."_

 _Chloe looks down and sees that Jack has fallen asleep. She sighs, knowing she needs to end the call and put him down for the night._

 _"Becs, I've got to hang up in a minute. I need to put Jack to bed."_

 _Beca nods, able to see that Jack is fast asleep in Chloe's arms. "Yeah...I can see that. He's passed out." She can't help but feel a bit left out as the baby is cuddled snugly against Chloe's body._

 _Chloe bites her lip. "Hey babe?"_

 _"Yeah?" Beca is yawning as she settles more comfortably the narrow space that is her bunk._

 _"One of these days I'm gonna marry you. And we'll have so many kids you won't be able to take off on tour anymore." Chloe grins at the thought of having more babies with Beca. "So, you better tell your manager that this is your last tour for a while."_

 _Beca chuckles at Chloe's bold statement. Marrying Chloe was absolutely on the agenda in the near future. "Yeah, I don't think me having a bigger family is going to stop the label execs from making me tour. But…let's talk more about the marriage thing in seventy-seven days." Beca replies with a shy smile._

 _Chloe's heart flutters at Beca's sincere response. "Yeah?"_

 _"Absolutely."_

 _Chloe feels tears prickling in her eyes and attempts to blink them away quickly. But they're absolutely the best kind of tears, and Chloe can't help feeling as though she just fell more deeply in love with Beca Mitchell._

 _"I love you."_

 _"Right back at ya Beale." Beca looks quickly to her left to make sure no one can see her, then blows a kiss to Chloe. She knows it's kind of lame, but she can't help the way she acts when Chloe is involved, and the smile that appears on her girlfriend's face makes it totally worth it. "Give Jack a big kiss for me. I'll try and call you guys tomorrow, okay?"_

 _Chloe brushes a tear away and nods. "Sounds good. Get some sleep Becs." With a gentle kiss to Jack's temple, she gives a tiny wave toward the camera. "Love you."_

 _Beca waves in return. "Night."_

 _The call ends and Chloe continues to stare at the screen, wishing that Beca's face would appear again. With a gentle sigh, Chloe puts the phone down beside her, pulling Jack against her and cuddling with her son for a few peaceful moments. In her mind, she knows that this separation is temporary, but with every fiber of her being, Chloe wishes the time passes quickly so that Beca will be back in her arms too._

"Chlo. Look at me." Beca's hand reaches out and gently rests on Chloe's thigh. Chloe stares at the water for a few seconds and then slowly raises her gaze to meet Beca's. "I know you're thinking about last time. Right?" She squeezes gently, and Chloe can see apprehension in her eyes.

Chloe nods, the lump in her throat making it difficult to form words.

Beca exhales slowly, scooting closer so she can wrap her arms around her wife, somewhat surprised when Chloe slumps into the embrace, wrapping her arms around Beca in response, her hands clutching at the back of Beca's t-shirt.

"Leaving you guys last time was probably one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I love you and our family so much Chloe. You and the boys make me so happy." Beca drops her head slightly to kiss the bare skin of Chloe's shoulder. "I promise I will talk to Charlie. If I have to go on tour again I'm going to do it on our terms." Trailing her fingers along Chloe's back she pulls back from the embrace, her eyes searching Chloe's face. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you right away. I got the email and freaked out and I didn't know how to bring it up."

It seems like a million thoughts are racing through Chloe's head. All she can think about are all the logistical details that go along with being a single parent to two young children for a few months.

"This really sucks Beca." Chloe says quietly, tucking her head back against Beca's neck.

"I know. It really does. It's fucking horrible timing. Just promise me that you'll tell me what you need, okay? If we can figure out a way to make this any less horrible for you, then we need to tell Charlie."

Chloe nods against Beca, exhaling a shaky breath as she does. Her eyes close for a few seconds as she feels Beca's lips against her temple. Her eyes open again when she hears Stacie calling them over and she releases her grip on Beca to turn toward where Stacie's voice was coming from.

"Paging Chloe Mitchell! Stop making out with your wife! Your presence is requested for a rematch of the epic grudge match of 2014."

Stacie is in the water, about chest deep, with Jessica and Ashley. Jessica is perched on Ashley's shoulders and both of them have their game faces on, beckoning Chloe toward the water.

"We're gonna kick your ass again!" Ashley taunts, a grin on her face.

Chloe forces a smile, not really feeling like joining her friends after the emotional conversation with Beca but knows she can't ignore the rest of the group for much longer. Giving Beca a quick squeeze on the shoulder, she pulls out of the embrace with a quick apology.

"Go." Beca forces a smile in reply. "We'll finish this conversation later, I promise."

Nodding, Chloe stands and helps Beca up before peeling off her tank top so she's in her sports bra and shorts. Kicking off her shoes and socks, she heads toward the water, slowly wading over to where her friends were waiting for her.

Beca heads over to where the rest of the Bellas have gathered to watch, a smirk appearing as she watches Stacie disappear under the water as Chloe settles on her shoulders. Jack steps out of the water and joins his mom, wrapping his arms around Beca's legs.

"What's mama doing?"

"It's called a chicken fight." Beca squats down so she is at Jack's level. "And your mom is about to get her ass kicked." She can't hide her amusement as Jessica and Chloe lock arms and start to push and pull at each other.

Jack giggles, and watches as a few seconds later his mama is toppling into the water with a playful shout.

"I told you." Beca chuckles as her wife resurfaces with a genuine grin and laughing despite her loss. "Mama and Auntie Stacie think they're good at this game."

Stacie is calling out about best two out of three, and the four women set up again for another battle.

"Mama's silly." Jack whispers conspiratorially to the woman beside him.

"Yeah buddy. She really is." Beca replies, giving her son a tickle. "But we love her anyway."


	12. Chapter 12

**Hey guys. So sorry it has been 2 months since I updated this. There's no excuse besides life has been insane lately. You know how it gets. Thanks for being patient, and enjoy this update!**

* * *

Beca sighs quietly and rolls over for what feels like the thousandth time to look at the illuminated clock on the table beside her and Chloe's bed. 5:28am. It had been a restless night's sleep for sure, as all Beca could think about was how to make the tour less strenuous for her family. Rubbing her tired eyes for a few seconds, Beca gives up, deciding to get up and go for a walk to try and clear her mind. As she slips on a pair of sweatpants, she glances over to where her wife is sleeping peacefully. Even in sleep Chloe is the most beautiful woman, and Beca knows she is the luckiest woman alive. She owes it to Chloe to figure the tour details out so that it doesn't cause more strain on their marriage, or even worse, on the kids. Pulling a hoodie on over her tanktop, Beca bends to give Chloe a gentle kiss on the forehead before locating the pad of hotel stationary to scribble a quick note in case Chloe wakes up before Beca returns. As Beca exits the room, she makes sure to check in on both her sleeping sons, then makes sure to shut the door gently to avoid waking up her family.

Beca makes her way down the corridor and towards the elevator, her eyes squinting as they adjust to the brightly lit hallway. While she waits for the elevator, she weighs her options of where to go, trying to choose between going to the pool area for a bit or taking a walk on the beach. The elevator door opens, and she decides to sit down by the pool on one of the lounge chairs for the time being, figuring that it will be nice and quiet there as the sun hasn't even come up yet. As she makes her way through the main floor of the hotel, she stops to grab a cup of coffee from the complimentary refreshment area. Throwing a lid onto the to-go cup, she exits the hotel lobby and takes a sip as she makes her way toward the large pool area. The sky is just beginning to lighten with the first glimpses of sunlight, and Beca is glad she chose the hoodie given the slight coolness to the early morning air. She heads over to a lounge chair nestled up against the rail and overlooking the wide expanse of beach and ocean adjacent to the large resort. Sighing quietly, she sits down, clutching the coffee in both hands and taking in the gentle sounds of the waves breaking along the sand.

It is quiet and peaceful, and although Beca loves her family and the Bellas, she is glad for some time to herself to think things over. She had always been somewhat of a loner, so being by herself is a welcome way to break up the craziness of her career and her life with a wife and two small children. In the past, Beca would shut the world out with her headphones, spending hours pouring over songs and creating mixes and tracks that eventually shaped her career. Music was her passion, and it flowed through her body, manifesting itself in melodies and rhythms that Beca created effortlessly. She loved that making music was her job. But being a wife to Chloe and a mom to Jack and Alex was her life.

As Beca considers her life, she misses the quiet sound of footsteps approaching behind her.

"Beca?"

Beca is startled but recovers quickly and glances behind her to find Aubrey, dressed in pajama bottoms and a hoodie of her own, with a cup of coffee in hand.

"Hey Aubrey." Beca smiles in greeting, and gestures for Aubrey to join her.

Aubrey contemplates pulling a nearby lounge chair closer but can sense the unease coming from the smaller woman, and instead sits down right next to Beca on the lounge chair, crossing her pajama-clad legs and fixing her gaze out toward the water.

"I'd never thought I would see the day that you were willingly up before the sun Beca." Aubrey teases gently, nudging her friend with her shoulder.

Beca rolls her eyes. "Aubrey, I have two kids under the age of five. Things are a little different from the college days." She takes another sip of her coffee. "And just because I'm awake doesn't mean I like it."

"Fair point." Aubrey concedes, taking a sip of her own coffee. The two women settle into a comfortable silence as they watch the sky starting to lighten with the rising sun. Aubrey steals a couple glances at Beca and notices the conflicted expression on her face. Turning back toward the beach, she takes a moment to compose her tactic before asking her friend what's going on.

"Couldn't sleep?" Aubrey asks cautiously.

Beca waits a few seconds before replying. "Yeah."

"Want to talk about it?" Aubrey turns slightly to look at her friend, then shifting her body so that she is facing Beca. She knows that their many years of friendship started off very rocky, but over the years she has come to consider Beca one of her closest friends. She watches as Beca contemplates her answer, clearly conflicted about spilling whatever is bothering her, even if it is to Aubrey.

Beca puts her coffee on the lounge chair beside her and pulls her legs up and wraps her arms around them. Resting her chin on her knees, she keeps her gaze fixed on the water.

"The label is having me go on tour again." Beca's eyes flick over to meet Aubrey's briefly and Aubrey can see the turmoil in them. "I just found out about it."

"When?"

"In a couple months. A summer tour." Beca runs a hand through her hair. "Chlo is taking the news pretty hard."

Aubrey isn't surprised. She could tell that something was off with her best friend all day yesterday. Chloe's demeanor had changed considerably after their gym session, but she hadn't had the time to talk to Chloe yesterday. "It's always been hard on her when you go on tour. I think the last time you went on tour Chloe spent more time on the phone with me than she did with you."

Groaning, Beca presses her forehead against her knees in frustration. "Not helping Aubrey. I already feel shitty enough about all of this."

Aubrey reaches out and places her hand on Beca's shoulder. "Sorry…I didn't mean it like that." She gives a gentle squeeze. "What I meant is that Chloe understands that this is a part of your life. Of her life with you. It may be tough for her and the boys to cope with you being gone, but you know that she loves you and she wants to be supportive."

"I just…I feel like she resents me for going off and playing shows." Raising her head from her knees, Beca turns it slightly so her cheek is resting on her knees so she can look at Aubrey. "Like I'm choosing this over her. Over our kids." Sighing, she continues. "And I can totally see where she would get that from. I've been working so much lately…I haven't been home enough. But I love my family so much. Chloe is literally the best thing to ever happen to me. Well, maybe it's a three-way tie between her and Jack and Alex, but you know what I mean. Every hour I spend at work and every time I have to go on tour…it kills me Bree."

Smiling sympathetically, Aubrey squeezes her hand on Beca's shoulder again. She has built her own family with Stacie and Bella, so she understands what it means to balance a career and a family. She has seen Beca and Chloe's relationship grow over the years and she knows the love that is shared between her two friends.

"I know its hard Beca. But you two will work through it. You two love each other, and you love your kids."

"Ugh…Bree…you make it sound so simple." Beca groans again. "I just…I don't know why, but this time it all feels so much worse."

"It probably has something to do with those handsome little guys you two have." Aubrey chuckles.

Beca can't help but grin at Aubrey's comment. "Probably." Her smile fades as she reaches down to take another sip of her coffee. "That's part of it though. It feels like we just had Alex. He'll only be six months old when the tour starts."

"He's too young to understand."

"I know that Aubrey! But it doesn't make it easier for me to leave. I'm going to miss three months of my kids' life!"

"I know it's not easy." Aubrey replies quietly, trying to calm her friend down. "If I had to leave Stacie for three months I don't know what I'd do." She looks away from Beca to gaze out along the water which is now sparkling with the first rays of sunlight. "Beca, I know this is hard for you. And as much as it pained me to admit at first, you are talented. So talented. We are all so proud of the things you have done with your music. But I'm even more proud that the alternative loner with a penchant for mad-lib beats, angsty eyeliner, and flannel became an amazing partner to my best friend and a mom to two adorable boys. I know you love them Beca. But I know that you were born to create music and to share that with the world."

Beca's eyes are suspiciously misty when Aubrey turns to meet her gaze again. She rushes to brush the tears away as she exhales deeply.

"Thank you." Beca's brow furrows slightly. "Even though I'm sure there was a dig in that speech somewhere."

Smiling, Aubrey bumps her shoulder against Beca's. "I meant it. I know it's tough to think about being away from Chlo and the kids but do everything you can to make the tour work for you and your family."

Beca nods. "I will. That's all I can really do, I guess." Pulling one arm from around her knees she wraps it around Aubrey's shoulders. "Thanks again." She pulls her blonde friend into her side for a quick hug.

"Anytime Mitchell."

The two friends fall back into their comfortable silence as they continue to watch the sun as it makes its way higher into the sky, causing the blue water to sparkle and the air to get warmer.

"Can you keep a secret?" Aubrey's voice breaks the silence after several moments.

"It's never been a strong suit of mine, but I can try." Beca replies, causing both women to laugh.

Once Aubrey stops chuckling, she turns toward Beca again. "I'm going to propose to Stacie."

"Holy shit!" Beca's eyes widen comically at Aubrey's statement. "I'm gonna need details ASAP Aubrey!"

Still smiling widely, Aubrey indulges her friend. "That's part of the reason I wanted to tell the Bellas that we were dating. I planned this whole reunion so that you all could be here when I proposed. We met because of the Bellas, it seemed fitting."

"Bree this is a big fucking deal! When are you going to do it?"

"I thought about doing it yesterday when we were at the waterfall, but I think I'm going to do it on the last night. I have a private beach luau planned for all of us, so that seems like the perfect time to do it."

"Oh my god. I'm so happy for you Aubrey!" Beca can't help but reach over and pull her friend in for a hug. Aubrey was notoriously private so Beca was stunned that Aubrey would trust her with such important information. "You know I'm gonna tell Chlo, right? I promise I won't spill the beans to anyone else but I have to tell Chlo."

Aubrey laughs in reply but brings her arms up to return the hug. "I know. I kind of want to be a fly on the wall when she realizes that I told you before I told her."

Releasing her friend from the hug, Beca groans quietly. "Oh shit, that kind of ruins it. She's gonna be pissed that I knew before her."

Laughing again, Aubrey shakes her head. "She won't be mad, but I know she'll be very excited. Chloe has always been very enthusiastic to say the least."

"Very true." Beca smiles at the mention of her very enthusiastic wife. "I mean it Bree, I'm so happy for you two."

"Thanks Beca. It took me a long time to pull my head out of my ass when it came to Stacie, but this feels like the right step for us."

"Well, you've always been the stubborn one."

Aubrey raises her chin slightly and pretends to be mildly offended. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure you don't." Beca rolls her eyes, but smiles when she sees Aubrey doing the same next to her.

Aubrey shrugs and moves to stand beside the lounge chair. "I probably should head back to the room. I need to hit the gym for a bit before breakfast."

"Jesus Aubrey, don't you ever give yourself a day off? You do know you're on vacation, right?"

"I like schedules and routines. You should know this by now."

"Oh, believe me, I do. I'm awaiting my daily itinerary for the day, by the way." Beca smirks as Aubrey begins to walk away.

"Don't worry, I'll be sending it out shortly." Aubrey calls out over her shoulder.

"Can't fucking wait!" Beca replies with a chuckle, shaking her head as she watches her friend head back into the hotel.

Beca reaches down and picks up her coffee, ready to head back in and hopefully join her wife in bed for a bit before they have to actually start their day. Her phone chimes indicating that she has a message and she pulls it out to check who the message is from. She laughs when she sees it's a message from Aubrey, with the aforementioned itinerary for the day. Shaking with laughter, she starts to pocket the phone again, before stopping and checking to see what time it is. 6:36am. Beca thinks back to what Aubrey had said about making the tour work for her and her family. Realizing that it is 9:36am in Los Angeles, Beca pulls up Charlie's number and listens as the phone begins to ring. She was going to have to do some negotiating in order to figure out a way to make the tour less disruptive on her family, but she was determined to make it work for them.

"Hey Charlie…about the tour, we need to talk."

* * *

The room is still dark when Beca enters, and her eyes immediately go toward the bed where Jack is still snoozing. She almost laughs when she sees how he is sprawled out across the bed, looking a lot like his mother as he sleeps peacefully. Not wanting to wake him just yet, she moves quietly through his room and into the larger room to check on Alex, who is suspiciously quiet for this point in the morning. Surprised to see her son sleeping in the middle of her and Chloe's bed with Chloe absent, she makes sure he is safely tucked into the center of the bed before heading towards the sound of running water in the bathroom.

Turning the handle, she opens the door to find Chloe shutting off the water in the large jacuzzi tub and lowering herself into the steaming water. Beca swallows thickly as she watches the muscles in Chloe's bare back rippling as she lowers herself down.

"Morning gorgeous." Beca says quietly, not wanting to startle her wife.

Chloe cranes her neck to find Beca leaning on the sink. Smiling in reply, she turns back and leans her head against the cool edge of the tub. "Morning." Closing her eyes, she allows herself to relax into the warm water. "Is Alex still sleeping?"

"Yes." Beca crosses the bathroom and perches herself on the edge of the tub. "I'm surprised he's still sleeping." Her eyes rake along the slightly distorted view of her naked wife under the water. "He's usually up and demanding your tits right about now."

"He woke up about an hour ago. I fed him, and he fell back asleep, so I figured I'd take advantage and try out this awesome jacuzzi tub." Chloe opens her eyes and sees Beca checking her out and can't help but smile. "Want to hop in?"

"No…yes. I mean, I definitely want to, but I know if I do I'd probably end up doing lots of dirty things to you and I know Jack and Alex will be awake soon." Beca leans in to give Chloe a kiss, purposefully keeping it quick to prevent acting on her urges to ravish her wife. "But let's definitely try this tub out together in the near future."

"Totes." Chloe grins and closes her eyes again. "You were up awfully early today."

"Yeah I needed to clear my head. I can't stop thinking about the tour."

Chloe's expression darkens briefly, and she opens her eyes again to look at Beca. "I've been thinking about it too."

Beca drops her head, reaching for Chloe's hand that is resting along the edge of the large tub. Picking it up, she runs her thumb along Chloe's knuckles softly.

"I called Charlie this morning. About the tour."

Chloe shifts in the tub, so she is sitting more upright. Her breasts are now visible above the water line and Beca groans internally as she tries to focus on the subject at hand and not the droplets of water making their way down toward Chloe's nipples.

"Focus Beca." Chloe chastises gently, loving the way that Beca was looking at her, but also wanting to hear more about Beca's conversation with her boss. "Do I need to get out and put a towel on?"

"No!" Beca squeezes Chloe's hand gently. "Stay." She rubbed her free hand across her face which was now slightly flushed. Clearing her throat, she focuses her gaze on Chloe's face and continues. "I told him the only way I was going on tour was if it worked for our family. I want to minimize the amount of time I'm away from you guys while still accommodating the amount of concert dates they have planned."

Chloe smiles at the determined look on Beca's face. Her heart flutters when she realizes that Beca is making an effort for her. "What did Charlie think?"

"He said he understood where I was coming from, and that he'd speak to the tour organizers and try and come up with a plan for us. I asked if they could arrange concerts on Thursdays through Saturdays, so I can be fly home between and be home with you for the rest of the week." Beca chews on her lip as she watches Chloe take in the information. "He said he thought it would be doable." Beca adds with a shrug.

Chloe's smile grows wider. "That would be awesome!" She leans in, and with her free hand, pulls on Beca's hoodie to pull her in for a kiss. She can feel Beca smiling into the kiss, and for the first time, Chloe feels some of the apprehension about the upcoming tour dissipate. Breaking the kiss, she leans her forehead against Beca's, tucking a strand of brunette hair behind Beca's ear. "Thank you."

Beca presses her lips against Chloe's once more. "I love you. I'd do anything for you and the boys." Pulling back slightly, she looks intensely into sparkling blue eyes. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you about it as soon as I found out. That was a dick move. But let's figure this out together, okay?"

Nodding, Chloe moves her hand to cup Beca's cheek. "I love you too." Rubbing her thumb across Beca's cheekbone tenderly, she smiles again. "We'll figure it out."

Chloe can visibly see the tension leaving Beca's body as she slumps slightly with a quiet sigh of relief. Chloe leans back once again against the tub and settles into the bath for a few more minutes. She knows they have a lot more to talk about, but she knows that they will figure things out. As she closes her eyes and enjoys the warm water swirling around her, a quiet cry from Alex comes from the bedroom. Chloe sighs and starts to move from the water, but Beca's hand on her arm stills her movement.

"Stay and enjoy your bath for a little bit longer. I'll get him." Bending down, Beca presses a kiss to auburn hair before exiting the bathroom to take care of the baby.

As her wife's footsteps leave the bathroom, Chloe allows herself to fully relax, grateful for Beca's efforts to put their family first. She'd have to enlist Aubrey and Stacie's babysitting services once again to take some time to fully thank Beca. Grinning at the prospect, Chloe reaches for the shampoo and starts to wash her hair so she can finish up and go join Beca to take on whatever Aubrey has planned for the day.


End file.
